Web Bytes

Scareware

2012-01-22T22:53:00.000-05:00

Scareware is malware which is software that is design to specifically damage your computer connected to the Internet. As the name implies, it is a pop-up that scares, tricks and yes, makes you panic as it is disguised to look like a legitimate warning from a security software company. This pop-up that makes you panic is usually a warning that your computer is at risk i.e. infected by a virus, scaring you into making a purchase of fake security software from scammers.

The only things wrong with clicking to make this purchase is that you have given these criminals sensitive personal information so they could now make exuberant purchases and/or possibly sell your information to others (identity theft). Additionally, you are given a false sense of security pertaining to your computer because if it was not at risk before, it certainly would be at this point.

Use common sense while using the Internet and not be intimidated into using sites and/or products you are not familiar with or did not previously purchase the products. Stay clear of pop-up windows intimidating or enticing you into purchasing products; close out the pop-up window and continue with your task.

More detailed readings on malware were posted under the October 2008 post titled “Phishing” and Feb 2009 post, titled “In-session Phishing”. Remember to diligently check for reviews from reputable sites on the security products you intend to purchase and also consider the company you are purchasing it from.

In His service,
AvaByGrace

Google Science Fair 2012

2012-01-12T17:12:00.001-05:00

For those of you how have children or know someone who has children between the ages of 13 to 18 interested in getting answers, check out the two videos below on Google Science Fair 2012 (the world's largest online science competition) which has an entry deadline of 1 April 2012. The first video is a brief introduction to the fair and the second one shows how to enter the competition.

Intro:

How to enter:

To find our more information on prizes and judging criteria, visit google.com/sciencefair

Have fun learning and exploring!

Tidbit - Tablet Media

2012-01-06T18:11:00.000-05:00

I read today that tablets, including Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle Fire, were purchased this holiday mainly by women in their forties according to the statistics from Maritz Research. I stated this simply because it reminded me to give you some information on these tablets. I received a Kindle Fire for Christmas which prompted me to search for free resources for this particular tablet. One of the most wonderful things I found was the public library’s downloadable media resources where there is a vast array of books (both printed and audio), magazines, music and videos you can borrow with the use of your library card; isn’t this neat? If you don’t have a library card, now is the time to get one, which can also be applied for online. If you don’t have a tablet, that’s okay because you can download this media for your PC, Mac and handheld devices such as BlackBerry and Android phones. For certain media (check digital rights) you can even make CDs for on- the- go usage if you do not have WiFi capability. This amazing fact along with the ability to borrow from owners in the Kindle community make the Kindle Fire more desirable than ever for me…thanks gift giver!

What are your thoughts on this and other suggestions for free downloadable media resources?

In His service,
AvaByGrace

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T04:13:00.000-05:00

Greetings Everyone,
Just a brief note to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. Pray you have an enjoyable time partaking of the season's festivities with family and friends. Please remember those less fortunate and share/help when and wherever possible. Thanks!

AvaByGrace

Our Condolences

2011-10-05T22:12:00.000-04:00

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, Inc., died today at age 56 (1955-2011). There are numerous reports on this breaking news all over the Internet so I would not attempt to write an article that may not truly represent his life’s accomplishments.

Web Bytes Blog extends our sympathy to the family and friends of Steve Jobs and we would like you to know he will be truly missed not only in the field of technology, but business as a whole.

Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

2011-10-05T22:11:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday!

2011-10-05T13:45:00.000-04:00

Today, Web Bytes Blog celebrates its 4th birthday. This past year has not been a very productive one due to other commitments and I pray this would improve as we go forward. There are a wonderful array of technological advances being made at this time and I would like to be able to research and write about them here. Again, I implore you to give your input into the type of articles you would like to see published here on Web Bytes Blog.

Thanks again for your continued readership and support.

In His service,
AvaByGrace

Tid Bit: Hidden

2011-06-04T14:56:00.003-04:00

Hidden is tracking software for Apple computers. If stolen, Hidden will show where the computer is and who has it. See an actual occurrence in recent news of a California man who activated the software when his MacBook was stolen. Through the iSight camera, Hidden will take pictures of the thief and the surroundings; it will take snapshots of the thief in action showing what is happening, and use advance tracking to locate the computer anywhere in the world close to the actual location. This is not freeware and the price range from $15 a month on one computer (Basic plan) to $395 a month on 100 computers (Ultimate plan). In addition to the above, the Hidden team will help the owner work with the authorities to recover the stolen computer.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,

AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Google's E-guide To The Web

2011-06-04T01:07:00.000-04:00

In light of Google’s stance Wednesday on discontinuing support of older popular browsers for Google Apps, their wonderful E-guide (similar to an illustrated children’s book) released in November 2010 and titled 20 Things I learned About Browsers and the Web, will give insight into the use of modern browsers and their impact on how we view and use the Internet.

Some of the topics covered in this E-guide are:
• What is the Internet
• Cloud Computing
• Web Apps
• HTML5
• Plug ins
• Browser Cookies
• Browser Privacy
• Malware, Phishing and Security Risks
• Open Source and Browsers

As stated in the E-guide, just remember it takes a modern browser to take advantage of most of the Web’s modern features. If we are or are not seasoned user of the Internet, this E-guide has things to offer every user. Try it out and let me know your opinion.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Google Browser Support for Google Apps

2011-06-03T20:25:00.002-04:00

Article first published as Google Browser Support for Google Apps on Technorati.

On Wednesday, Google announced (Gmail Bag) it would soon only support recent versions of popular browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari) for Google Apps. By recent versions, Google would support the current and last versions of that browser as it focuses on new capabilities available to modern browsers through HTML5. This change in discontinuing support for older browsers is schedule to take place on August 1, 2011. On this date, Google will no longer support Firefox 3.5, Internet Explorer 7, and Safari 3. This lost of support will be on a rolling basis (each time a new version is released, Google will start supporting that version and stop supporting the third oldest one).

It behooves users to keep their browsers up-to-date in order to take advantage of all the benefits available with the new capabilities housed in modern browsers. Initially when this change takes place, apps such as Gmail desktop notification for email and chat messages, and Google Calendar may not work properly and eventually would not work at all. So as stated by Venkat Panchapakesan, Vice President of Engineering at Google, “As the world moves more to the web, these new browsers are more than just a modern convenience, they are a necessity for what the future holds.” Others are taking strides to help users transition to current browsers such as: Microsoft (Internet Explorer 6 Countdown, Apple (Apple – HTML5), and Mozilla (Showcased HTML5 through videos) to name a few. Vendors are looking to the future and embracing HTML5 through their various applications.

HTML5 dominating the Web and putting HTML4 out to pasture is not in the very near future; however, the rate times are changing and technological advances are emerging it does not hurt one to stay abreast of modern technology and have fun doing so.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Today in Computer History

2011-05-30T16:59:00.000-04:00

On this day
…1996 – AT&T announced video phone call system, a system which allowed personal computers to make and receive video calls over a standard telephone line.

…2001 – Microsoft released Office XP

In His service,
Avabygrace

References
Computer History Museum

Computer Hope

Dropbox

2011-05-17T16:37:00.004-04:00

is a convenience tool that quite a number of people would not want to be without. It allows you to have access to your files, photos, and videos etc. anywhere via your computers and mobile phones (Windows, Mac, Linux, iPad, iPhone, Android and BlackBerry). It is a downloadable application for the device you will be using it on and makes the data available to you anywhere whether you are or are not online. Every time you update Dropbox, your computers and mobile phones will also be updated making the data current on all devices and totally in sync with each other. The only part of the data that is transferred to your devices is the changed portions.

You can also invite others to share your folders and also to share only specific files. Any changes made will be seen instantaneously, making collaboration on projects and other activities easy and an efficient use of time.

Another benefit of Dropbox is that if there is a problem with your hard dive, the data is availability for restoration in a snap. This is like having your personal backup system for the information you entrust to Dropbox. On this note, the information is protected through the use of encrypted channels (SSL – Secure Sockets Layer) for transmitting the data and all files stored are encrypted with AES-256 (Advance Encryption Standard). Dropbox also keeps 30 days of undo history on all your files even if they are deleted from your hard drive, giving an added recovery feature if warranted within the time frame.

Best of all, Dropbox is free for the Basic plan of 2GB of space. For those wanting more space, there is Pro50 with 50GB of space for $9.99 and Pro100 with 100GB of space $19.99 per month. There is also a referral incentive for free memory upgrade up to 3GB. Additionally, there is support via the Help Center, Forums, and Vote Box as well as a Dropbox Blog, Twitter, Facebook and Wiki.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,

AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Gmail Labs - Background Send

2011-04-26T01:48:00.000-04:00

The newest feature in Gmail Labs called ‘Background Send’ is a feature to enable you to continue with other tasks instead of waiting for your mail to be sent. You can even send more than one email and it will be sent in the background while you continue to work. Of course, since this is in Labs (click on Options then Labs) it is in the testing or beta stage and is not quite ready for prime time. If you enable this feature, there is a possibility it could break, change, or completely disappear at anytime. So far I have had positive experiences with the features I enabled while in Labs.

When you enable this feature and ready to send an email, as you click the ‘Send’ button you will get a message “Sending in the background” (images taken from Gmail Blog at reference link below).

If your message was sent successfully, you will get “Your message has been sent”.

If there is a problem with sending the email, you will get a ‘send error’ stating “There was a problem sending your message. Fix. Fix later”. You can continue working and fix the problem later or fix it right away as the options imply. The ‘send error’ will remain until you fix the problem.

If you are still seeing “Sending in the background”, it is advised not to sign off or close your browser until the mail has been sent because you will probably lose it.

I enabled and used this feature and the emails were sent faster than prior to enabling it. If you decide to try it out, I would be interested in hearing how it is working for you.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Reference
http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/new-in-labs-background-send.html

Tid Bit - Chrome OS

2011-04-25T03:37:00.002-04:00

There is talk about some sort of SaaS (Software as a Service also known as cloud computing) angle for Chrome Operating system. According to thechromesource.com, rumor has it that Google has plans to sell Chrome OS on a monthly basis ranging from $10 to $20 per month subscription service. I gather it would be somewhat like a cell phone contract for the service. There is no mention in these rumors if this will be bundled with other services for the subscription rate. To reiterate, it has been rumored!

If you are interested on more information on this rumor, PCWorld.com has an article that could give you an expanded view on this Tid Bit topic. Daniel Ionescu of PCWorld.com, in another article, also mentioned the devices for the Chrome OS (netbook) is scheduled to be in stores by mid-2011.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Gmail Tweets

2011-04-07T02:39:00.003-04:00

Recently, there have been some changes made to Gmail in response to users stating the one thing that would make them love Gmail even more. There was such a terrific job done on the original article that I won’t reiterate the intricate details of the changes. Here is a list of the tweets made and the link to the original article in the Official Gmail Blog:

• Auto-save contact setting
• Better warnings for typos in email addresses
• Fewer annoying error pop-ups
• Easier transition between certain actions
• Keyboard shortcut guide for everyone
• Refresh button

To read the description of the changes visit the Official Gmail Blog link.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader

Web Browsers

2011-04-02T01:42:00.003-04:00

With all that has been happening lately in the world of web browsers, I thought I would do a brief overview of some of the most popular choices available. Bear in mind this is not an exhausted list and they are listed in no specific order or preference.

A web browser is a software program that allows one access to the Internet and programs on a computer’s hard drive. It provides other functionality not often thought of by the average computer user while navigating the various programs on the computer and sites on the Internet such as spell check, password management, tab browsing, run large applications and download items to name a few. You can have more than one web browser installed on your computer at the same time, in fact I encourage you to do so in case there is a problem with your main browser, you would have another way of accessing the Internet and performing browser-tasks; I have three currently installed on my desktop.

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) – First released in 1995, IE was the most widely used web browser for many years and continue to be one of the most popular. Statically, according to w3schools.com as of February 2011, IE is used 26.5% of the time. The latest version of IE is 9 and there is a mobile version.

Mozilla’s Firefox – Released in 2004, this browser is currently the most widely used web browser as shown by w3school.com with 42.4% user rate in February 2011. Additionally, it is one of the most standard-compliant web browsers available. The latest version of Firefox is 4 and there is also a mobile version.

Google’s Chrome – Released in 2008 and is one of the most popular browsers with a 24.1% statistical user rate. The latest version of Chrome is 10 with 11 beta format.

Apple’s Safari – Released in 2003 and is the default browser for Mac with a 4.1% user rate, but is also available for Windows and iPhone operating systems. The latest version is 5.

Opera – Released in 1996, this is the smallest and fastest web browser in the world according to Opera software and has a user rate of 2.5%. The browser is used in smartphones, internet activated mobile phones PDAs, Windows, Mac, and Linus operating systems. The latest version of Opera is 11 for Windows.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader

Google Account Advance Sign-in Security Feature

2011-02-10T16:53:00.001-05:00

Today, The Official Google Blog provided us with information on this new security feature that would help us not lose control of our email account, such as emails we receive from our friends asking for aid when stranded or invites to the best of employment opportunity; spam to be more specific. To significantly increase the security of your Google account, Google has developed a new advance security feature called 2-step verification which helps to verify ownership of the account. This advance protection was developed previously for Google Apps customers and would become available for all Google account holders shortly. This feature will be rolled out within the next few days via a link in your account settings tab. According to the blog post, enrollment can take up to 15 minutes to complete and there will be a set-up wizard to help in this process. Once the 2-step verification is enabled (see diagram below), you will see a second page prompting for a code to complete the sign-in process. Upon entering your password, Google will call or send you the code via SMS messaging or you are given the choice to generate it yourself through a mobile application for Android, Blackberry or iPhone devices. By entering this code during the sign in process, you are telling Google you are the person authorized to sign into this account.

This 2-step verification process offers more security since for hacking to occur, the hacker would need to know your username and password as well as have access to your phone. As seen in figure #2 above, you can choose to have your code remembered on this computer for 30 day, but in my opinion this weakens the security process we are hoping to enforce. The post also mentioned one-time application-specific passwords to sign in to non-browser base applications that can ask for the password, but cannot prompt for the code.

To learn more about 2-step verification visit Google’s Help Center.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

To follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

OpenOffice.org 3.3

2011-01-29T12:50:00.001-05:00

The latest version on OpenOffice.org, version 3.3 is available for download at http://download.openoffice.org/ and of course it’s free. This popular office productivity suite has been steadily claiming the spotlight and is the preferred suite for over a hundred million users.

OpenOffice.org 3.3 addressed current and future user requirements and the folks working on the project also mentioned this version being faster in start up and overall operation. Below is a brief list of the new elements:
•    Embedded standard PDF fonts
•    New document security and collaboration options
•    Provisions for one million rows in a spreadsheet
•    New Options for CSV (Comma Separated Value) import in Calc
•    Ability to insert drawing objects in Charts
•    Improved slide layout handling in Impress
•    A common search toolbar
A complete list is available at
http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.3/ and the security bulletin with full details of the potential vulnerabilities fixed is at http://www.openoffice.org/security/bulletin.html.

If you haven’t taken a look at OpenOffice.org yet, visit “The Case for OpenOffice.org”. This information enables you to see why you should seriously consider giving it a try or at least be aware you have a free option.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

New Year's Note

2011-01-02T01:55:00.001-05:00

As 2011 starts, I would like to say “Thank you!” for being a valued reader in 2010 and pray you will continue in the future. Last year was very difficult and time was not available to concentrate on meeting the goals for Web Bytes Blog. I pray with the passing of the old and the beginning of this New Year, I would be able to provide you with the type of postings you came to expect from Web Bytes Blog. Right now I am still pressed for time, but prayerfully hope to change this in the very near future.

As always, please submit topics that you are interested in. I am praying 2011 will be a healthy, happy and Christ-centered year for all of us.

In His Service,
Ava

SEASON GREETINGS!

2010-12-25T02:46:00.000-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Google eBooks

2010-12-06T21:39:00.001-05:00

Today, Google launched its eBook program. The program makes books available via the cloud using almost any device with Internet access such as Smart Phones - Android phone, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch; eReader devices - Barnes & Noble Nook and Readers from Sony; and browsers with Java Script enabled. Google eBook stores your books securely in a digital cloud making them available to you no matter where you are. The library contains hundred of thousands of books to purchase and more than 3 million free eBooks. When returning to a book you were previously reading, you will start to read where you left off in your previous reading session. This is made possible using the Google eBook application. The app also allows syncing of your reading position across all the devices for continued reading.

You can purchase your Google eBooks from the Google eBookstore or from an independent bookseller. At the present time, purchasing books can only be done from within the United States; however, the free books can be accessed from any where in the world. It is also not compatible with the Amazon Kindle.

Google eBooks allow for choices –
•    Shop where you want (not limited to a particular vendor with propriety readers)
•    Use the device where you want (home or out and about)
•    Choose the device you want (multiple devices – used one type at home, another on the go and a third at work)

For more information, visit Google eBook Overview.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Microsoft Security Essentials

2010-10-27T22:36:00.000-04:00

PC World has published a list of technology products they consider the best of 2010. Since October is Cybersecurity month, I would be remiss if I did not point out a product on the list that would provide security coverage for your home computing needs. Number 10 on the list, Microsoft Security Essentials, is a free downloadable anti-virus software that provides real-time protection for home computers. This protection consists of spy ware, viruses, worms, Trojans and other malicious software (malware). Microsoft Security Essentials is kept up-to-date via automatic updates as is customary today with similar products. To see how this product compared with other products in the security category for Windows 7, you can check out test results done by AV Testing at http://www.av-test.org/certifications. The results for Windows XP will be out soon and Windows Vista the fourth quarter of this year. While there, you will notice that well known security software did not do as well as Microsoft Security Essentials; this is food for thought!

Note: Your PC must be running Genuine Windows software to install Microsoft Security Essentials.

If you are interested in viewing PC World's full list of Best Productivity Software of 2010, the link below will take you to the list.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/207485/best_tech_products_2010_full_list_1100.html

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Today in Computer History

2010-10-05T20:50:00.000-04:00

...1996
Seymour Cray, the father of the supercomputer, died today due to injuries from a car accident. He founded Cray Research in 1972 and created the first supercomputer, the Cray-1, in 1976 followed by the Cray-2, and 3. His computers were used primarily for scientific research and computer graphics. Cray's Alma Mater is the University of Minnesota where he attained a B.Sc in Electrical Engineer and a M.Sc in Applied Mathematics.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the "Follow with Google Friend Connect" Link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Reference:

http://www.thocp.net/biographies/cray_seymour.htm

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2010-10-05T20:12:00.000-04:00

Web Bytes Blog is celebrating its third birthday today. Thank you for being a part of our readership. Going forward, I pray I would be able to spend more time researching relevant information to write articles worthy of your time. I also pray you would continue to read the articles and comment on them as well. Again, thank you for being a part of this journey with me.

In His Service,
Ava

Tidbit ~ Turn Off Gmail's Conversation View

2010-09-29T21:28:00.001-04:00

Gmail blog wrote today about the rolling out a new feature over the next few days pertaining to conversation threads (emails of the same topic are grouped together). You can now choose to receive your Gmail with or without conversation threads. For those of you who find the conversation threads annoying simply go to “Settings”, look for the “Conversation View” section, select “Conversation view off” and save the changes. This action will allow you to have individual emails each time even if they pertain to the same topic. If you decide you would like to receive your mail with conversation threads again, simply reverse the aforementioned actions.

Below are examples of mail with and without conversation threads taken from Gmail Blog.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the "Follow with Google Friend Connect" Link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Tidbit ~ Gmail Priority Inbox (Beta)

2010-09-09T20:04:00.001-04:00

Last week, Google launched Priority Inbox (Beta) to experimentally handle information overload in Gmail. Today, they are sharing five ways to use this feature more efficiently which are listed below. For complete details on incorporating these tips into your Gmail program visit the Gmail Blog at http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/5-tips-for-using-priority-inbox.html

Five tips for using Priority Inbox (Beta)
1.   Customize your sections
2.   Train the system
3.   See the best of your filtered messages
4.   Use filters to guarantee certain messages get marked important (or not)
5.   Archive unimportant messages quickly

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

TidBit ~ Google Realtime Search

2010-08-28T14:44:00.001-04:00

On Thursday, Google rolled out Google Realtime Search on its own Web site. Realtime was originally rolled out last December as part of Google Search. Realtime brings the freshest and most relevant information up-to-the second from across the Web for your search results; therefore, it only made sense to give it its own home. You can get Realtime updates as soon as they occur or bundled on a daily or weekly basis. These up-to-the second updates are from sites like Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, news sites, blog post etc. Real-time search allows you to receive the most current information on the Web, whether it is breaking news or simply a blog post.

To try Google’s Realtime search and ascertained more information visit the above link or http://www.google.com/landing/realtime/

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Making Calls from Gmail

2010-08-26T15:22:00.000-04:00

Article first published as "Making Calls from Google" on Technorati

Yesterday Google rolled out a new feature to U.S base Gmail users. This feature allows you to call any phone from Gmail. Currently, calls to the US and Canada will be free and there is a fee to call other countries. If you are already set up to use this feature, you will see a new icon “Call Phone” when you sign in to your Gmail account. This icon is listed under the “Chat” link on the left of the screen. When you click on the “Call Phone” icon a pop-up key pad window will appear where you can point and click the numbers you would like to call or select a contact from your contact list. After placing a call you have the option of redialing the number. Pretty neat! You can also install voice and video plug-in from this pop-up window with the key pad if you do not already have this installed.

If you have a Google Voice account, you can choose to have these calls received in your Gmail account by following the instructions given in Google Chat Help. Remember you will need to have voice and video plug-in installed on your computer for this new feature to work.

For more information on this new Gmail feature, visit http://www.google.com/chat/voice/
As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

New Jing Features

2010-08-25T18:29:00.006-04:00

TechSmith has updated Jing (a screen capture application) with three new features to enhance user experience. The next time you sign in to Jing you will be prompted to install the new version which will contain these new features or you can choose to defer this upgrade for two weeks. To view previous Webbytes blog posts on Jing, check out the 11/22/08 post and the 3/3/09 posts.

These new features are:

Audio control

This new feature helps if you use more than one audio device to record videos i.e. a headset and the internal microphone on your computer. Now Jing will now automatically prompt you to select which one of the devices you would like to use prior to recording a video. You can also specify the recording device in Jing preferences. Check out the Learning Center for this feature.

Sharing via Secure FTP (File transfer protocol)
This new feature allows you to send your content directly to the site you want it to go to(a secure FTP). Jing now lets you point and click to accomplish this by first creating a customized output button with the details for the server. This makes it easy to share your captures with others. Steps for creating this button can be seen on a video at the Jing’s Learning Center via this link http://www.techsmith.com/learn/jing/tutorials/share/the-ftp-button/default.asp?cmp=jing24

Jing Auto Detects
If you work with a proxy server, Jing will automatically detect your proxy settings and it supports authenticated proxy. You will have to set your preferences and Jing will do the rest. In visiting the Learning Center, I only saw information for Windows so I would have to presume this new feature only applies to Windows operating systems at this time.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,

AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Gmail Changes

2010-08-11T17:45:00.007-04:00

Article first published as Gmail Changes on Technorati.

Yesterday Gmail Blog announced several changes to Gmail for Mail, Contacts and Tasks. These three most used features have been moved to the top left hand panel making them easier to find. In the same vicinity the Compose link has been replaced with a button.

Another change is the move of the All, None, Read, Unread, Starred and Unstarred links to the left of the Archive button. They are now housed in a drop-down menu above the selection field and as stated, left of the Archive button. There is also a broader area for documenting your tasks.

Gmail has also made some major changes to Contacts making it easier to use as requested by the users so keep making your comments. Contacts can now be sorted by last name via the More action button and selecting the Sort by you prefer. Other changes are custom labels for phone numbers and other fields; the Undo feature is also available for Contacts; automatic saving of changes; the option to use structured name fields or continue with free-form fields; the merging of manual and bulk contacts via the More actions menu; and selecting and grouping contacts have been made similar to selecting and labeling email. Lastly, keyboard shortcuts can now work in Contacts.

If you are a Gmail user, a pop-up window will display the first time you sign into Gmail notifying you of the new changes.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Google Chome Drop and Drag

2010-08-04T12:38:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, Google announced one of its newest tips for Google Chrome. The task of dropping and dragging attachments from emails and saving to your desktop is now possible with the Google Chrome browser. This can be done by opening the email and hover (let your mouse remain on the item) your mouse over the attachment link or the file icon. This will produce a tooltip (a pop-up with a brief description/instruction) stating “Click to view OR drag to your desktop to save”. You simply click and hold the file with your cursor then drag the file to where you want to save it. Release the file and your attachment is saved. Great time saving tip!

Other time saving tips on attachments:
Drop and Drag Attachments onto Messages (Google Chrome and Firefox only)
http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/drag-and-drop-attachments-onto-messages.html

Drag Images into Messages (Google Chrome only)
http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/drag-images-into-messages.html

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Google Calendar Has New Labs Features

2010-03-11T00:12:00.000-05:00

It was announced today that Google Calendar has three new features in Labs; the features are currently not part of the production calendar, but can be tried out during this phase. The Labs features can be accessed through the Labs icon once you have signed into your Google account and gone to the Google Calendar page.
These new features are:
• Event Flair – When this feature is enabled it has 40 icons to choose from to place next to your activities ranging from a piece of cake to an island vacation. After you enable this feature, click on an event and look for the “Event Flair” icon to enable it. Keep in mind that this icon will be visible to all attendees of the event so chose appropriately.
• Gentle Reminders – when this feature is turned on, there will be no annoying pop-ups to interrupt your work. The calendar window or tab would blink to gently remind you of an event.
• Automatically Declining Events – when this feature is turned on, it blocks off time during which you are not available, and automatically declines invitations during this period of time.
These three new features can add customization to your calendar, but keep in mind that the features in Labs, as the name implies, are experimental and can break, change or disappear at any time.
As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

OpenOffice.org 3.2 Available

2010-02-12T15:49:00.001-05:00

Celebrating its tenth anniversary year, OpenOffice.org announced yesterday the availability of its latest version, OpenOffice.org 3.2, for download. For those of you who are not familiar with it, OpenOffice.org is a free, open source productivity suite which is comparable to Microsoft Office. This newer version is said to work faster than its predecessors, offers new and improved functions, and increased compatible with other office software. Additionally, previous bugs and security vulnerabilities have been fixed.

According to the OpenOffice.org site, the new features available with the 3.2 release include:
•   Fast start up times
•   Improved compatibility with open standard (ODF) and proprietary file formats
•   Improvements to all components, particularly the Calc spreadsheet, with over a dozen new or enhanced features
•   The Chart module (useable throughout OpenOffice.org) has had a usability makeover as well as offering new chart types.
For the full guide to the new features available with this new release visit http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.2/

As always, users are encouraged by the OpenOffice.org community to upgrade to the new release to protect against potential security vulnerabilities. For those of you still using OpenOffice.0rg 2.x series, the support for security patches and bug fixes was discontinued in December 2009 so upgrade is to your advantage and highly recommended.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Other Links:
“Why OpenOffice.org”
http://why.openoffice.org/

The security bulletin with full details of the potential vulnerabilities fixed
http://www.openoffice.org/security/bulletin.html

Tib Bit - Barnes & Noble Nook on Shelves

2010-02-09T15:06:00.001-05:00

This is just a brief blog post on some exciting news for those of you interested in electronic readers. According to the New York Times online, Barnes & Nobel will start to sell their Nook electronic reader (eReader) in its brick and mortar stores starting tomorrow. The online price for the Nook is $259, but there is no mention as to the in store price. I guess Barnes & Noble is trying to beat Apple to the punch by capitalizing on the sales from this market prior to the Apple iPad being available in stores. Way to go B&N!

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Acer's eBook Reader

2010-01-25T17:09:00.001-05:00

Acer, the world’s second largest computer vendor has announced it will be releasing its first electronic book reader (eBook reader) June 2010. The reader will have a 6-inch monochrome screen. Along with this, they will also be offering an online electronic store. These two initiatives are aimed at boosting company profits which is always the bottom line. Acer’s eBook reader will be sharing the market with similar devices such as Amazon’s Kindle, Sony’s Reader and Barnes and Noble’s Nook. In addition to the release of its eBook reader, Acer plans to release its very own netbook in the third quarter of the year with Google’s Chrome operating system installed in a percentage of these computers. There is also talk of Acer releasing its own Tablet but the information is not concrete. May be after Wednesday, 1/25/2010, when Apple launch’s its Tablet, Acer would be more forthcoming with the details.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links:
http://erictric.com/technology/acer-launching-its-own-app-store-ebook-reader-and-tablet-this-year

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=aM.JBLgSxJek

2010

2010-01-01T00:52:00.001-05:00

Wishing all Web Bytes Blog readers a happy and healthy 2010. God willing, this new year will afford me the time necessary to write meaningful and informative blog post on a regular and consistent basis. Thank you for your continued readership and support.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

End of Life for OpenOffice.org 2.x

2009-12-22T22:18:00.000-05:00

With the upcoming release of OpenOffice.org 3.2, the folks at OpenOffice.org formally announced today the end-of-life status for its legacy version 2.x series of the productivity suite. In a nutshell, the end-of-life status means that if you continue to use this legacy version of the software, you will loose Community support as a whole for patches, bug fixes and security updates.

It is always recommended to upgrade to the latest version of software to receive the benefits of any new features, bug fixes and security improvements over the previous versions. Additionally, there is only so much time that is given for support of legacy software.

Technically, you can still use the legacy versions but the Community support as a whole will not be in place to help with problems. This requires time and human resources that have already been diverted to deal with problems and enhancements to the newer versions of the software.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Tib Bit - OpenOffice.org YouTube Channel

2009-12-16T15:49:00.001-05:00

For those of you who use OpenOffice.org, they have their own channel on YouTube which you can view at http://www.youtube.com/user/openofficeorg. It appears to be relatively new since there is not a whole lot of information published thus far. There is information on how to contribute to the OpenOffice.org project and interviews pertaining to the Renaissance Project. You can subscribe to the channel to comment on and/or upload and share your own videos on OpenOffice.org by using or creating a YouTube account. If you already have a Google account, you can sign in with the username and password for this account; this gives you the same access as creating a YouTube account. With this access you can build playlists of your favorite videos from any YouTube channel to watch later.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Doodle Update

2009-12-09T13:58:00.004-05:00

If you have been using Doodle because of our October 13, 2009 blog post, there is a recent product release you may be interested in; the iPhone App.

The iPhone Application

In collaboration with Neoos, Doodle has available this iPhone app which provides core Doodle features to make scheduling easy and more fun to run. It is available at the iTunes App Store for $2.99. Doodle for iPhone supports all the essential features of the Web version. These features include:
•   Initiate and track meeting requests from your iPhone, wherever you are
•   Invite participants using your iPhone address book
•   Optimized result view suggesting the best option for your meeting
•   Communicate with participants using the comments feature
•   Quick participation with the “All Options” or “None of the Options” button
•   Easy access and overview from your dashboard
•   Connect your MyDoodle account to stay in sync with your web dashboard
For answers to some frequently asked questions by current users of this application check out Neoos’ FAQ at http://www.neoos.ch/products/doodle-for-iphone/doodle-for-iphone-faq
As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Thanks for Hanging!

2009-12-02T14:15:00.003-05:00

Hello Everyone;
Just a brief note to apologize and thank you for hanging in there during this break in blogging. I apologize for not posting on Web Bytes Blog recently and keeping you posted on what is happening. I am working on a project that is keeping me really busy and I do not have the time at this moment to dedicate to blogging on current and important home computing topics. I truly apologize for not writing this blog post sooner and I will get start blogging as soon as I can.

Thank you for your readership and I look forward to interacting with you on a regular basis soon. In the meantime, if you have any questions, concerns or research items you would like me to blog on once I get started again, please let me know and I will respond as soon as I can.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

2009-11-11T15:31:00.001-05:00

I want to say thanks to those who previously served and those who continue to serve our country. I appreciate all you have sacrificed in order to serve. A special 'shout out' to those who served with me in the 34th MSES, 1st TAC and the 722 ASTS!

In His Service,

AvaByGrace

Ning's Virtual Gifts

2009-10-26T02:44:00.004-04:00

If you have created a social network on Ning due to the blog post I wrote here on Web Bytes (http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/06/social-networking-ning-platform.html), you may be interested in the following information as the network creator.

Early last week Ning has joined others in introducing “Virtual Gifts” such as teddy bears, books, desserts, flowers, jewelry, handbags etc. to their network. This feature gives members another way of connecting with each other. Network creators have two ways of customizing the gifts on their network - They can choose from hundreds of Ning Gifts that are applicable to the type of activity on the network they have created or provide their own custom gifts through upload to the Gift Store for their Ning network. Ning may also allow network creators to customize the Gift Store for their network.

This new feature makes history as it is Ning’s first attempt at a revenue-generating feature on its networks and providing a 50/50 revenue sharing Incentive Program between Ning and the network creators. Once the network creators have opt-in to the Incentive Program they can start receiving their share of the revenue earned quarterly starting in 2010 when they have earned a minimum of $100.00. Ning also starts each network member with 100 credits to go toward the purchase of “Virtual Gifts” on their network. More credits can be purchased through the Gift Store with a PayPal account.

To give a member a “Virtual Gift”:

Click on the Member tab
Select the member you would like to give a gift to. You will be taken to that member’s page
Click on the link by the gift box that states “give a gift”. You will be taken to a page with gift categories. You can narrow your search to a specific category or search all the “Virtual Gifts” available on your network
Selected your “Virtual Gift”
Add a message like you would on a gift card
Set the privacy setting
Send Gift for delivery to the member’s My Page

As I browsed the Gift Store for my network, the “Virtual Gifts” were all worth 75 credits except one. This was a pink ribbon signifying, to me, breast cancer which is celebrated during the month of October.

Hope this information will encourage you as a Ning network creator to go deeper in creating your Virtual Gift Shop if you choose to opt-in to the Ning’s Gift Store Incentive Program. I like the idea of the ability to have a free gift to choose from as the one signifying Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I think this should continue throughout the year for other worthy causes. What are your thoughts?

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Tid Bit - Technorati Article

2009-10-22T00:56:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone;

I just published an article on Technorati.com about OpenOffice.org 3.2 (OOo) Beta that is not suitable for home computing (I am so proud of this accomplishment). Briefly, OOo is an office productivity application similar to Microsoft Office that we here at Web Bytes Blog are very familiar with. If there are no “show-stoppers” in the testing, this will become the latest version of the OOo application scheduled for release in December 2009, just in time for the holidays. It is at that time that I would write a post for Web Bytes Blog on all the new features and enhancements that would be of value to us. Please visit the link below and let me know what you think of this article as well as browse the new Technorati site which was deployed on Monday. ~Thanks!

http://technorati.com/technology/article/openofficeorg-32-beta-available/

Reminder: Windows 7 is scheduled for release today!

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Passwords Revisited

2009-10-19T23:58:00.001-04:00

Due to the recent users’ credential compromise of some email accounts (Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, some AOL, Comcast and EarthLink’s accounts) as well as it being National Cyber Security Awareness Month, makes this the perfect time to revisit passwords. Previously we discussed in detail creating and using strong passwords see http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/05/strong-password.html and http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/06/secure-passwords.html. Upon investigation of the Hotmail incidents, it was discovered that the majority of people whose passwords were compromised used weak passwords. An example of this is using “12345” as their password, but I know Web Bytes Blog readers would not be among this group because you have read my previous password blogs and you practice the tips you get here :)

There are software applications that can help with the creation and management of strong passwords if you prefer not to handle this part of your computer security. Some of these applications are Lastpass password manager which has a free and premium version, Roboform which also has a free and pro version, StickyPassword, AnyPassword which has a free and pro version, Password Director, and Safe-n-Secure password manager. To visit the Web sites for these applications just add .com to the name in your browser and you will be directed there.

In addition to creating and using strong passwords, the security suite you use to secure your computer and other maintenance practices are very important to ensure you are doing all you can to protect your assets and identity. Don’t just have these applications installed on your computer. Make sure they are updated as they should, if for some reason the applications are not automatically updated. Below are some links to previous Web Bytes Blog posts in connection to securing your information and your computer. Additionally, you can do a search on Web Bytes Blog to find more blog posts on security.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Reference Link:
More Lists with Stolen Email Account Credentials Uncovered
http://news.softpedia.com/news/More-Lists-With-Stolen-Email-Account-Credentials-Uncovered-123649.shtml

Web Bytes Blog Links:
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/home-computing-security.html
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/spybot-search-destroy.html
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/pharming.html
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/phishing.html

Tid Bit - Optimum Online Backup

2009-10-11T20:47:00.003-04:00

For those of you who have Optimum online as your Internet Service Provider (ISP), they are offering up to 2GB free backup for your computer files. This offer is for residential usage only. This free service will be powered by Carbonite which automatically backup the most important files on your computer. The backup files are encrypted and stored at a secured location and available to you from any computer with Internet access. This action would help protect your files from accidental deletion, computer failure, theft, power surges and disaster. If you would like unlimited backup, you would have to upgrade to their $44.95 per year which is discounted as their current rate is $55.00 per year. If you missed this through Optimum you can visit http://www.optimum.net/backup for complete details. You can also visit the Carbonite site at http://www.carbonite.com/ to find out how the service works.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY, WEB BYTES BLOG!

2009-10-05T14:01:00.002-04:00

Today is Web Bytes Blog’s first birthday…HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY! I can’t believe a whole year has passed since I wrote my first blog post, incorporating a few articles I originally wrote for Gracious Times Newsletter on Phishing and Pharming, thereby creating Web Bytes Blog's beginning history on Blogger ~ boy time really flies.

With the starting of Web Bytes Blog's second year, I pray God will give me the desire to continue writing and you to continue reading and commenting. There are a few topics I need to revisit or research per your recommendations and I prayerfully would like to do so within the next few months.

Please continue to comment and submit your questions and topics for research. Thank you for taking this year long journey with me, that we continue on together and you invite your family and friends to join us.

In His Service,

AvaByGrace

National Cyber Security Awareness Month - 2009

2009-10-05T00:50:00.002-04:00

In addition to October being Web Bytes Blog’s first birthday, it is also the 6th National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM). During this month, the federal government has a multi-state campaign to collectively offer guidance to help Americans become cyber security conscious both at home and in the work place. Conscious effort must be taken to be aware of where you are going before you click a link on the Internet just as you would while walking the streets. Try to remember that cyber security is your responsibility just as it is for the other guy.

Some of the steps to improve computer security at home have already been discussed in various blog posts throughout the year (see the links section below) but will be reiterated here for enforcement and to make cyber security a habit.
- Installation and proper use of:
      Anti-virus applications
      Spyware
      Spam filters
      Firewalls
      Parental controls

- Backing up critical files via external media. Also use passwords on your portable devices

- Keep up-to-date your operating system and Web browsers

- Use caution while sharing sensitive information

- Use strong passwords or strong authentication technology

- Check for https or pad lock protocols when sharing sensitive information on trusted Web sites

There will be various articles and exhibits around the country during October in celebration of NCSAM. If possible, plan an afternoon to enjoy some of theses activities. You can download a cyber security awareness toolkit at http://www.msisac.org/awareness/oct09/2009awareness.cfm all in PDF downloadable format. The kit includes an awareness calendar, posters, bookmarks, a how to guide for IT security in government, etc. Some security awareness events scheduled are Florida’s security summit and Webcast at http://www.floridagtc.com/ on October 6 and West Virginia’s conference and Webcast at http://www.state.wv.us/ot/article2.cfm?atl=E7F0EC88-B89D-11D5-92170020781CA4C6 on October 19. A full calendar of events can also be found at http://www.staysafeonline.org/ncsam. I am sure there are other states participating in this national security awareness project. If you know of others, please share with us.

Non-technical computer users can get security advice from the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) at http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/tips/. You can sign up to receive tips via email directly to your inbox

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links of Interest for Cyber Security Awareness:
Cyber security month tip of the week: Don’t be fooled by scams
http://www.ucsc.edu/news_events/text.asp?pid=3255

Safety Tips on Free Internet Access
http://www.webbytesblog.com/search?q=https

Backup Applications
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/06/backup-applications.html

Strong Passwords
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/05/strong-password.html

In-Session Phishing
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/02/in-session-phishing.html

The Difference between Http and Https
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/01/tib-bit.html

Automatic Maintenance
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/automatic-maintenance.html

Home Computing Security
http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/home-computing-security.html

Doodle

2009-10-03T20:38:00.006-04:00

I first used Doodle while taking part in a poll to determine the date and time most appropriate to schedule a training session and it really works. The date most convenient for all involved through the poll was chosen for the training. Doodle eliminated the going back and forth either through emails or by phone to arrive at a schedule that was doable for all.

In its basic form, Doodle is a free online tool that aids in the scheduling of appointments, lunch, conference calls, family reunions, movie night etc. with no download or registration required. You can also create your very own poll for such activities/events/things as movies, menus, travel destinations or any other selection you are interested in. The Doodle site (http://www.doodle.com/) has step-by-step instructions for creating your poll and scheduling an event. Once you have created your poll, you will invite others to vote for their preference of time or activity as the poll directs. Registration is not required as previously mentioned to use Doodle, however, by registering for a Doodle account you have access to more features as well as keep track of the polls you initiated and participated in. Doodle also has two paid for products (Premium Doodle and full Branded Doodle) that are not ad-supported as with the free products. The Functions and Products link below will give you a comparison of the various features for each product level.

Doodle can also connect to your calendar allowing you to create polls from within the application such as Outlook, Google Calendar, Apple iCal and Lotus Notes. You can start your poll within your calendar application and invite people to participate in the poll using your address book. You can sync your calendar based on your participation in the poll or the final date. There is an installation guide and user manual for the Outlook plug-in. You can change your calendar integration under “Manage Account” once you have created a MyDoodle account.

Give Doodle a try for your next scheduled event or create a poll for that ultimate spot for your next family reunion (http://www.doodle.com/).

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com/ to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links:
Functions and Products
http://www.doodle.com/about/productOverview.html

Frequently Asked Questions
http://www.doodle.com/about/faq.html%20

Blog
http://doodle.com/blog/english/

Help
http://www.doodle.com/about/help.html%20

Terms of Service
http://doodle.com/about/tos.html%20

The Computer History Museum

2009-09-16T20:00:00.005-04:00

The Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California in the heart of Silicone Valley, USA displays and preserves the history of computers for future generations as well as the present one. I have been using this site for referencing material on the "Today in Computer History" post for a couple of months now and decided it was necessary to write a post on the site and all it has to offer. The museum has exhibits where you can learn about the people who made computing history and their stories. At the link below in the “Links” section you can explore and discover all that the museum has to offer. There is a timeline that explores the history of computers from 1939 to 1994 (see link below) showing significant technological innovations in hardware, software, artificial intelligence and various commercial applications. There is also a listing of the events hosted at the museum as well as the various exhibits.

The Computer History Museum is also on YouTube (see link below) and has quite a number of videos about the history of computers and the people who made it happen. There is a video on the home page giving an overview of what the site has to offer. Additionally, you can see the recordings of innovations in computer history and the people who worked diligently to make this history preserved via video for generations to come. This along with the Computer History Museum Web site will really expand your knowledge of this topic if you are an enthusiast like me.

As of the writing of this blog post the Computer History Museum on YouTube has 74 videos and a play list of 44 videos on Internet/Network, Semiconductor, Personal Computing and Historical Computer Files.

Hope you enjoy your visit to these two sites and when you are in California, if possible, visit the museum and let us know your impression of it.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/

Computer History Museum on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerHistory

Timeline of Computer History
http://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/

Today in Computer History

2009-09-16T17:05:00.005-04:00

On this day
…in 2009 – Microsoft unveils Project 2010 (the beta version) at their Microsoft Project 2009 conference building on the foundation set by the Microsoft Project 2007. The beta Project 2010 will become available later this year to the public but you can pre-register at http://www.microsoft.com/project/2010 starting today. In response to this, it was said that this is the most significant release of Microsoft Project in over a decade by one of its senior vice presidents.

…in 2004 – Firefox 1.0 PR debuts. Mozilla.org unveiled its much anticipated alternative for Internet Explorer. Firefox 1.0 PR is the pre-released version or beta version for this browser. The features on this first version included Live Bookmarks, allowed for RSS feeds, a built-in Google toolbar, view more than one Web page at time, customization options and of course a built-in pop-up blocker.

…in 1997 – Microsoft Corporation unveiled its improved Web TV in its ongoing effort to increase its share of this market

Sources:
Microsoft Unveils Microsoft Project 2010
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Microsoft-Unveils-Microsoft-prnews-454601955.html?x=0&.v=1

Firefox 1.0PR: a first look
http://reviews.zdnet.co.uk/0,1000000193,39166826,00.htm

Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

Computer Hope
http://www.computerhope.com/win95.htm

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Ning Apps

2009-09-10T17:28:00.002-04:00

A few months ago I wrote on the social networking platform, Ning. For those of you who took this information and created your own social networking site through Ning the below information would be of interest to you and to those considering this platform, the information may help you decide.

Ning has made available multiple applications to enhance your site and encourage greater interaction for members. The addition of these new apps brings the total to over ninety which will expand and enhance you and your members’ experience. Because these apps were created specifically to work with Ning, their integration into your network would be smooth and uneventful. As the creator of the network you would control the apps through the Manage tab as with other Ning apps.

Some of these recently available apps are:
• SocialGiving by Pinc – raise awareness and money for your cause
• Sellit – create income by importing an existing store or creating a new one
• Huddle workspaces – let members collaborate on files and discussions
• Ustream.tv – add interactive video streaming and chat services
• WordPress – to display your WordPress.com blog post on your Ning network
• PollDaddy - you can display custom polls for your social network
• Twitter Tracker - Track mentions of your favorite terms across Twitter
• Tungle.me – if you are tired of emails and phone tag, this app makes it fast and easy to make meetings happen

There is an additional eight relatively new Ning apps you can check out to see if the addition to your network would be advantageous for all. Check the links section below and this link (once you have signed into your network) http://rightdivision.ning.com/opensocial/ningapps/list for more information.

I will keep you posted when new Ning apps are ready for implementation.

As always, post your comments, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links:
Introduction to Ning Apps
http://tinyurl.com/mxu82p

Adding a Ning App
http://help.ning.com/cgi-bin/ning.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=3724

OpenOffice.org Legacy Series (2.x)

2009-09-04T23:57:00.005-04:00

In an email I received today, OpenOffice.org has announced the release of a minor update to its legacy series (2.x). This new update, 2.4.3, was announced today. OpenOffice.org recommends legacy users upgrade to the 3.x series where the current version is 3.1.1.

As a legacy user, you can check out the full details of the bug fixes of this new release at http://development.openoffice.org/releases/2.4.3.html

Expect a new version on OpenOffice.org, specifically 3.2, containing quite a bit of new functionality to be release in November 2009. Will keep you posted.

As always, email me with your comments and topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Gmail Features

2009-08-27T01:18:00.005-04:00

Everyone is busy with no time to keep abreast of the various enhancements to applications they are currently using. This blog post will peruse some of the features of Gmail or what is being tested in Google Labs.

• Mentioned first, because of its unique status, Tasks is the first graduate of the Gmail Labs which helps you keep track of the things you need to do. Tasks can be used with Google’s Calendar, iGoogle and mobile in addition to Gmail, keeping you current on important task no matter which application you have accessed. This featured is listed under the “Contact” link on the left of the screen once you have signed in to your Gmail account.

• Drag and Drop Labels let you organize your mail as you see fit. Mail that go together can be grouped in a label and you will have access to everything pertaining to this topic in the same label---folder

• I am sure you have seen the Chat section on the left which allows you to do just that with voice and video. There is a link in the chat section that allows you toTalk Face to Face. With the Chat feature you can also sign in to your AOL Instant Messenger account and chat with your AIM buddies from Gmail. It works the same way as in AOL, just click on the buddy and start typing.

• Fast PDF Preview allows you to preview a PDF document straight from your inbox without downloading it via the ‘View’ link.

The below enhancements are still in Google Labs and their functionality can disappear at any time, break or become a fully functioning production feature. With this in mind you can use the features and be among the first to know what’s happening with the ones you chose to use. To access these features you will need to turn them on in the Labs Tab under Settings in your Gmail account. You can also revert back to your normal Gmail by going to http://mail.google.com/mail/?labs=0, troubleshoot which feature you think cause the problem by disabling one at a time and reporting your observations to the team via the ‘send feedback’ link next to the feature.

• Here it is! Ever clicked the send button and then realized you made a mistake? Well Google Labs is working on the Undo Send feature which allows you to cancel the send email as soon as you send it.

• YouTube, Picasa, Flickr and Yelp Previews allow you to see a preview of videos, photos or reviews right in your email prior to linking to it. Each one is an individual feature.

• Offline, as the name suggests, allows you to access your Gmail account and work offline.

• Create a Document allows you to create a Google Document from an email conversation by clicking on the ‘Create a Document’ link.

• Text Messaging in Chat works the same as texting does in Google Voice. It allows you to send text and receive messages from your Gmail account.

• Gmail Themes allow you to customize the look of Gmail to suite you from the 30 themes available. Themes are only available in Internet Explorer 7.0 and newer, Firefox 2.0 and newer, Safari 3.0 and newer, and Google Chrome.

• Superstars add additional star icons to the existing yellow default star. The Labs tab gives instructions on how to set up this feature once you have enabled it so read the information displayed with it and follow the steps.

• Pictures in Chat allows you to see your friends’ profile when you are chatting.

• Custom keyboard shortcuts allow you to customize your keyboard shortcuts mappings and add an additional Settings tab for remapping the keys

• Message Translation changes messages you received in other languages to your default language.

• Google Calendar Gadget adds a box in the left column that shows your Google Calendar---you’re always abreast of upcoming events even though you are not signed into your calendar.

• Google Docs Gadget also adds a box to display your Google Docs and includes a search option.

• Add any Gadget by URL allows you to add a gadget which shows in a box to the left also

These are just a few of the features Google Labs is working on. To get the entire list you can go to the Labs tab under Settings in your Gmail account. Also, visit the Links section at the bottom for more information,

As always, email me with your comments and topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

You can follow this blog via the “Follow with Google Friend Connect” link on the right, add http://www.webbytesblog.com to your RSS feed or Google Reader.

Links:
General Information
http://mail.google.com/mail/help/intl/en/about_whatsnew.html

Tasks Video
http://mail.google.com/mail/help/tasks/

Details on using Tasks
http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&ctx=mail&answer=106237

Dirtiest Web Sites of Summer 2009

2009-08-24T17:41:00.004-04:00

Symantec has published a list of sites that are prone to Malware threats. It is called “Dirtiest Web Sites of Summer 2009”… dirty because you don’t want its contents on your computer. According to Symantec, 48% of these sites have sexually explicit content and are therefore excluded from the list. Categorically, we have phishing sites, malicious downloads, browser exploits and links to external sites that are unsafe. Since downloading is the primary method of infecting your PC via viruses, it remains the primary method of infection followed by security risks and browser exploits.

Symantec has created this list as part of an analysis for Norton Safe Web product. Safe Web offers a free way to check a site for its Malware propensities such as computer threats, identity threats, ecommerce safety threats and annoyance factors by entering the site’s URL (Uniform Resource Locator or address bar as it is commonly called) at http://safeweb.norton.com. Additionally, some vendors have features or plug-ins to warn you prior to visiting a site that is a high-risk Malware threat – McAfee Site Advisor has a plug-in for Firefox and Internet Explorer and TrendMicro has a feature. The software I have on one of my computers from CA has a status bar at the top of the screen verifying the validity of the site. With CA you can hover your browser over the link to find out the status prior to actually clicking on the link. Knowing this status gives you the choice of proceeding or aborting the visit. With the foregoing, users have two ways of checking sites prior to visit, either through the Safe Web site or through features and/plug-in in your browsers.

Below is Symantec’s list from the Norton Save Web site. The list does not include sites with sexually explicit URLs. You can visit http://safeweb.norton.com/dirtysites to view the individual reports used to get these sites landed on this list.

Sample of Dirtiest Web Sites:
• 17ebook.com
• aladel.net
• bpwhamburgorchardpark.org
• clicnews.com
• dfwdiesel.net
• divineenterprises.net
• fantasticfilms.ru
• gardensrestaurantandcatering.com
• ginedis.com
• gncr.org
• hdvideoforums.org
• hihanin.com
• kingfamilyphotoalbum.com
• likaraoke.com
• mactep.org
• magic4you.nu
• marbling.pe.kr
• nacjalneg.info
• pronline.ru
• purplehoodie.com
• qsng.cn
• seksburada.net
• sportsmansclub.net
• stock888.cn
• tathli.com
• teamclouds.com
• texaswhitetailfever.com
• wadefamilytree.org
• xnescat.info
• yt118.com

Even if the sites you visit are not listed here, my pray is for you to develop a conscious security habit during your time on the Internet.

As always, email me with your comments and topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links:
Dirtiest Websites of Summer 2009
http://safeweb.norton.com/dirtysites

Latest news and threats
http://safeweb.norton.com/buzz

Today in Computer History

2009-08-24T17:09:00.004-04:00

On this day
… in 1995 – Microsoft Corporation released Windows 95 which added major enhancements to the then current version, Windows 3.11. These enhancements included Plug and Play, 32-bit OS, Registry, improved memory, right mouse click and CD player. Windows 95 was the first operating system that did not depend on MS-DOS even though this system was included. This release sold more than 1 million copies within four days. August 24, 1995 was also exactly two years after winning a lawsuit brought by Apple pertaining to some of the enhancements in Windows 95.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

Computer Hope
http://www.computerhope.com/win95.htm

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Free Software for Back-to-School or... - Part 2

2009-08-19T00:02:00.004-04:00

Continuing with the trend of the last post, I have searched Web Bytes Blog archive to find more software that will ease the budgetary constraints for back-to-school. Below are some of the results of this search with the software download or online links listed in the “Links” section at the end.

MozyHome is a 2GB online backup application to safeguard your invaluable research and papers. There is a free version as well as a for-fee one. Other free software in this category from the archived section is Adrive and Mediafire. See http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/06/backup-applications.html for more details.

Google Doc is a cloud computing application that allows you to create documents, spreadsheets and presentations online; share and collaborate in real time; safely store and organize your work and control who have access to your documents. This application will come in handy for class projects that involve sharing and collaboration and will definitely alleviate the necessity to email documents back and forth. http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/07/google-docs.html. Below is a link where you can take the Google Docs tour.

Another collaboration application is Microsoft Office Live Workspace. This application is similar to the previous one except at this time it is not real time collaboration. It works well with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook office productivity suit and you can synchronize software. You can synchronize tasks, events and contacts with Outlook 2003 and 2007, export any workspace list to Excel, Open and save files directly from Office XP, 2003 or 2007, save documents to your workspace directly from Word on your PC. Check the whole post at http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/11/microsoft-office-live-workspace.html.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links
http://mozy.com/
http://www.google.com/google-d-s/tour1.html
http://workspace.officelive.com/

Free Software for Back-to-School or...

2009-08-17T20:42:00.002-04:00

Hi all ~ I haven’t written for awhile so I thought I would recap the use of some of the free software previously written about on Web Bytes Blog that would help ease the budget constraints while doing your back to school shopping. At this time of year, some have already gone back to school and others will follow shortly so below are some software applications for either download or online that can help with the cost of being productive and professional. As mentioned, the software listed here was previously written about extensively on other Web Bytes Blog post so the links would be given. To help maximize your time spent achieving your software needs for back to school, I have placed the links to the actual software at the end of the post under “Links”.

OpenOffice.org (OOO) is one of the very first freeware productivity suites written about on Web Bytes last year. This download will save money on your writer, spreadsheet, database, presentation and calculation as these applications are part of this productivity suite. Another plus of OOO is the ability to save files as PDFs. See http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/this-is-first-of-two-part-series-on.html for the first post on OOO and do a search for the rest if you are interested.

Spybots Search & Destroy is free software that can be used as part of your computer maintenance/housekeeping regime. This application scans your computer for spyware and Malware (Viruses, worms, Trojan horses, dishonest Adware, etc.) and can be always on with the Tea Timer feature. See http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/spybot-search-destroy.html

Google Voice is an application that works as a go between your phone number and the outside world. You can use the Google Voice number when you do not want your actual number to be known. This is an online application (Web based or Cloud computing, which ever terminology you prefer) and is by invite only as of now so if you are interested in this application you need to follow the link for Google in the “Links” section below and request your invite. See http://www.webbytesblog.com/search?q=google+voice for the details on all the features that come with this free online application.

Gmail’s Mail Fetcher is a way to save time on accessing your email accounts by consolidating them into one Gmail account. If you already have Gmail you can add five additional email accounts to it and read all your mail with one password and one account. If not, check the “Links” section below and sign up for this free email account. Read the entire post at http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/07/gmails-mail-fetcher.html

AVG Anti-virus free edition is said to be more effective than other free anti-virus software applications. See entire post at http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/06/avg-anti-virus.html

PrintWhatYouLike is a free online eco-friendly print editor that lets you format any Web page for printing. If this is one of the features you will need for research, check it out it works. See http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/05/printwhatyoulikecom.html

This is just some of the applications we have discussed thus far that are free and will help with some of your productivity needs for school, as well as home and can even be incorporated into work depending on your organization. I will go through the archived post and see what other goodies are stored there that would be of help for back to school.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links
Http://www.OpenOffice.org
http://www.safer-networking.org/en/home/index.html
http://www.google.com/googlevoice/about.html
http://www.gmail.com/
http://www.printwhatyoulike.com

More on Google Voice....Videos

2009-08-03T12:23:00.005-04:00

Below are some videos I came across on YouTube and one from Bruce Naylor of FrugalTech that is approximately 5 minutes long (excluding the 10 second commercial). These videos can help you decide whether or not you need Google Voice. I think it is a neat service provided by Google for free and can help you coordinate you communication devices and help manage your time.

I pray this information is of help to you and as always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service
AvaByGrace

Tid Bit - Browser Speed

2009-07-28T06:55:00.004-04:00

In a recent study, pcworld.com tested browser speed and Google Chrome still is the fastest browser with an average page load of 1.699 seconds, followed by Firefox with 1.762 seconds…not a lot of difference, but still there is a difference. Internet Explorer has an average page load of 1.833 seconds and Safari 1.964 seconds followed lastly by Opera. These results are based on site visits to eight sites with Google coming in first in five of the eight sites. If you are interested in the details of this test such as how the test was conducted, visit (converted really long link to a tiny URL) http://tinyurl.com/mh7e9w

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-07-28T06:52:00.003-04:00

On this day
… in 1997 – Dell introduce their 400 Workstation, which led their entry into this market. The cost of this more powerful computer desktop, the 400 Workstation, ranged from $3000 to $8,000.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Microsoft's Office Web

2009-07-23T23:48:00.004-04:00

Microsoft has plans to make a free Web version of Office which they plan to release in 2010 along with Office 2010. This Web-based application is Office Web and it will encompass lightweight Web browser versions of Excel, PowerPoint, Word and OneNote. It is geared toward the consumer, but as with pass innovations, will eventually be enterprise ready. When available for public use, Web Office will be accessible from Microsoft’s Windows Live portal via your browser. Documents will be stored on Microsoft’s SkyDrive service, a 25 GB of free storage and sharing files and photos, which is a component of Microsoft Windows Live strategy. SkyDrive makes them accessible from computers, mobile phones and browsers via the Internet while preserving the documents.

I pray this information is of help to you and as always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service
AvaByGrace

Link:
SkyDrive
http://skydrive.live.com/

Reference:
McDougall, P (2009, July 20). Cloud Plan: Free Office, And Per-Use Pricing.
InformationWeek The Best Value of Technology, 1,236, 12.

Today in Computer History

2009-07-20T17:34:00.004-04:00

Today in Computer History

On this day
… in 1969 – Apollo 11, known as the greatest technological achievement of all time took place and we celebrate its 30th anniversary today. Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon communicated with us here on earth saying his famous phrase “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.

…in 1976 – The first robot on Mars, Viking 1, landed there seven years after Neil Armstrong’s maiden flight. The Viking 1 and its predecessors returned information and pictures of the planet giving us a glimpse into “life” on Mars…even if there was no actual life.

Sources:
Apollo 11 30th Anniversary
http://history.nasa.gov/ap11ann/introduction.htm

Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Gmail's Mail Fetcher

2009-07-18T00:19:00.006-04:00

If you are like most people you have a few email boxes and it takes some time to check mail in all of the accounts. Gmail created by Google has the solution to this tedious task via Mail Fetcher. If you do not have a Gmail account, which is free, you can ascertain one at http://www.gmail.com and set up Mail Fetcher once the account has been set up. This feature can be enabled to handle five email accounts. Once you sign into your Gmail account you have access to all the email accounts you added via Mail Fetcher without having to sign into them individually. The email accounts you would like to fetch the mail from must support POP (Post Office Protocol – a protocol used to retrieve email from a mail server¹) access. If it is a Gmail account you must have POP access enabled under Settings in the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab. Bear in mind also that some free email accounts do not allow POP access so this may not be a viable option for you. Contact your email service to find out if POP is enabled for your free account if you are having problems configuring the settings.

To set up Mail Fetcher, follow the below steps:
• Sign on to your Gmail account and click on Settings in the top right hand corner next to your email address
• When you are in settings click on the Accounts tab next to the General tab
• In the Get mail from other accounts section, click on Add a mail account you own
• In the pop up window, enter the full email address of the account you would like Mail Fetcher to fetch the mail from and click Next Step
• Mail Fetcher will populate the fields of POP Server and Port and what label the incoming mail will have. If you get an error, check with your email provider to get the correct server name and port.
• You have to decide which of the options, which are self explanatory, available on this screen you would like to enable. If you do not enable any, at least select Always use a secure (SSL) connection when retrieving mail
• Click on Add Account
• Once your account has been added, you will have the option of setting this new account as Custom From Address which allows you to create messages in Gmail and have them appear as if they were sent from your other email account. Isn’t this neat. Click Yes to set up this feature.

The above steps are quite easy and don’t take much time to set up this time saving feature. In the accounts tab you can see when your other account was last checked for mail. There is also a link where you can view the history of Mail Fetcher listing the date, and activity performed. Next to the View History link is a link Check Mail now where you can check for mail manually.

If for any reason you need to disable Mail Fetcher, follow the steps below.
• Sign on to your Gmail account and click on Settings in the top right hand corner next to your email address
• Click on the Accounts tab
• In the Get mail from other accounts section, click on delete next to the account you would like to disable and Mail Fetcher will now stop retrieving mail from that other account

Gmail has a Help Center where you can search the database if you have any questions not covered here. You can also check out the various other features Gmail has to save you time in using their email client at the links below.

I pray this information is of help to you and as always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service
AvaByGrace

Links
Help Center
http://mail.google.com/support/?ctx=about&hl=en

Help Forum
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/gmail?hl=en

Gmail Blog
http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/?utm_source=us-en-gmnav&utm_medium=et&utm_content=gmnav

Reference:
¹What is POP? (2007). What is POP? -a word definition from webopedia computer dictionary. In Internet.com. New York, NY: WebMedia Brands, Inc. Retrieved July 17, 2009, from
http://webopedia.com/TERM/P/POP2.html

Today in Computer History

2009-07-18T00:15:00.003-04:00

On this day

… in 1968 – Intel was founded by Gordon Moore and Robert Noyce in Silicon Valley and is now the largest employer in Santa Monica. There is also an Intel Museum where you can see how Intel technology is changing the world through exhibits and interactive learning for all.

Sources:
Intel
http://www.intel.com/community/california/santaclara/index.htm

Intel Museum
http://www.intel.com/museum/visit.htm

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Google Docs

2009-07-14T23:35:00.001-04:00

A request for more cloud computing applications was received in my mail box so I decided to write on a long overdue application which is widely in use. This application is from Google and is called Google Docs which is an open source application and falls into this requested area of cloud computing. It allows you to create documents, spreadsheets and presentations online; share and collaborate in real time; safely store and organize your work and control who can see your documents. This type of application for home computing is very effective in sharing/collaborating on school work and projects such as family and group events and has numerous possibilities for the home office and small business entity. The feature of always available is also important in this information persistent society and if you already have a Gmail account you already have access to Google Docs. Below are some of the benefits of using this free Web based/cloud computing application from Google.

Creating documents – this can be accomplished from scratch or use a template. The type of document you can create as well as existing documents to upload are DOC, XLS, ODT, ODS, RTF, CSV, PPT etc. The toolbar buttons in Google Docs are similar to those you already use in creating your desktop documents so this familiarity makes getting started easy.

Share/Collaborate – This aspect of Google Docs allows you to choose who can access your documents by entering their email address and sending them an invitation. This is similar to using Windows Office Live Workspace (OLW) http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/11/microsoft-office-live-workspace.html. Unlike OLW, Google Docs allows for real time collaboration with multiple users and editing as well as an online chat window to show who changed what and when on spreadsheets and documents. This makes ever having to share information via email passé with it’s back and forth time delay.

Safety online/organizing – This is a cloud application so there is no downloading to access your documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. All you need is a computer with Internet access and a browser to view and create your documents. This aspect of Google Docs also saves storage space on your PC and is a plus in the event of a hard drive crash or power failure since all is in the cloud. You can also organize your documents by placing them in folders for easy finding when needed.

Publishing – In publishing your document, you have choices in who can access your document --- allow all to see, a few people or only you…you decide. You can also stop publishing the document on the Web at any time. Google Docs allows you to post a document to your blog and within your company or group.

Some need to know info:
• Create from scratch or template
o Upload from PC or enter a URL of a file or a Web. You can email documents and files directly to the email address given after you sign on to Google Docs. This is a long and complex address, but it is a necessary security feature to this option. This emailing feature does not work with spreadsheets and PDFs.
• MS Word (.doc, .docx), Rich Text (.rtf), Open Document Text (.odt), and Start Office (.sxw)
• Presentations (up to 10 MB from your computer and 2 MB from the Web, 500 KB via email)
o Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pps)
• Spreadsheets (up to 10MB)
o Comma Separated Value (.csv)
o Microsoft Excel (.xls, .xlsx) files and Open Document Spreadsheet (.ods)
• PDF Files (up to 10MB from your computer, 2MB from the Web)

This is a short overview of Google Docs and the links below will provide more information for those who would like to use this application. If you have used OLW and decide to try Google Docs, let us know your take on both.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service
AvaByGrace

Links:
Google Docs
http://docs.google.com/

What’s New in Google Docs?
http://www.google.com/google-d-s/whatsnew.html

OpenOffice.org Certifications

2009-07-13T17:50:00.003-04:00

If you have embraced OpenOffice.org suite and incorporated it into your productivity regime, there is an OpenOffice.org Certification given at Prometric Test Centers, a global supplier of testing and assessment services. This certification, which requires registration, shows your proficiency and skill in three areas of OpenOffice.org suite – OpenOffice.org Writer 3.0, OpenOffice.org Calc 3.0, and OpenOffice.org Impress 3.0. Since OpenOffice.org is gaining popularity and being used by many governments and business professionals, attaining this certification will add to and enhance your professional credentials.

To know more about this process, visit the Prometric site at the link below.
http://www.prometric.com/OpenOffice/default.htm

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-07-13T17:42:00.004-04:00

On this day

… in 1992 – Chip Deal with IBM (US), Toshiba (Japan) and Siemens (Germany). IBM announced these three companies joining together to create a memory chip able to store 250 million bits of data. This collaboration will take place in one of IBM’s factory in East Fishkill, NY making this a significant stride for IBM and America as well as a new global cooperation, minimizing previous fighting for market leadership.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

IBM in Chip Deal with Toshiba and Siemens
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/13/business/ibm-in-chip-deal-with-toshiba-and-siemens.html

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Google Chrome Release 06/2009

2009-07-04T14:09:00.002-04:00

For those who downloaded Google’s Chrome browser there is a new release (2.0.172.33) that protects against a critical security vulnerability of buffer overflow in handling certain responses from HTTP servers. The severity of this problem is critical as it may allow an attacker to run code as an authorized user would. Additionally, the release also fixes two other network problems relating to HTTPS where the browser crashes when accessing some of these sites and the failing to connect to HTTPS sites via the NTLM authentication to Squid proxies. NTLM (Windows NT LAN Manager) is a suite of security and session protocols used to implement some of Microsoft network protocols... referring to the authentication of the user’s right to be signed on to the network. Squid is web cache/proxy server that speeds up Internet browsing by reducing the time and bandwidth consumption because of reusing frequently requested Web pages.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links:
Google Chrome Release Notes:
http://googlechromereleases.blogspot.com/2009/06/stable-beta-update-security-fix.html

Squid freeware:
http://www.squid-cache.org/

Today in Computer History

2009-07-04T14:02:00.002-04:00

On this day

…… in 1956 – Direct keyboard input. This was the debut of keyboard entry on the computer as we know it today on MIT’s Whirlwind computer which was completed five years prior to this. The whirlwind was also the first computer with video display of real time data (text and graphics) as well as core memory for RAM.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

MIT Whirlwind Computer
http://www.cedmagic.com/history/whirlwind-computer.html

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Google Voice

2009-06-25T17:12:00.004-04:00

Today, one of the headlines on Lifehacker.com was “Google Voice Invites Going Out to Reservation List” so I thought I would give some insight into this free Google-own telephony service. Google Voice uses voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) to enable the linking of an individual's various phone numbers (home, cell, business) operating from one number and SMS (Short Message Service) messaging. Several of the articles on the Internet mentioned Google had obtained over a million phone numbers for this new telephony service. Currently, we are told it is available only for GrandCentral users (the original name for the project), but yet I am seeing it available nationwide for today only as reported on The Today Show. Features of this service include:

Call screening – announce and screen callers
Listen in – operates like an answering machine so you can hear who is calling as the call is being recorded
Block calls – block unwanted calls and have message play to let them know they calls are no longer welcomed---you have reached a disconnected number or the number is no longer in service.
SMS – you can send, receive and store SMS messages on your PC and receive them sent you your Google number on any phone as well as respond from your PC
Place calls- call any US number for free (cheaper international calls) using your Google number from any phone, call anyone from an email or missed called via the Google Voice application
Taking calls – depending on how you set up your settings one or all of your phones will ring when you receive a call to your Google number and the listen in feature will be activated
Phone routing – phones ring base on who calls. You can customize which phone will ring for who, set as a group of people, customize or send calls straight to voice mail, the Spam folder or block completely, you decide
Forwarding phones – add phones and decide which will ring

Voice mail

Voice mail – the voice mail is transcribed allowing you to read what was said and becomes a permanent record. Transcriptions can be turned off is you prefer not to have this feature
Listen to voice mail – you can listen to voice mail from any phone or online
Notification – you are notified when there is a new voice mail via email or SMS. Email notifications contain the caller, length of the message, transcription of the message and a “Play Message” link enabling you to listen to the message
Personalized greeting – you can customize your greeting for a group or individual and choose from an existing greeting or add a new one of your own
Share voicemail – this can be done through forwarding an email to a friend, save a copy to your computer or embed in a Web site or blog --- available to all visitors to the site

Note: All the features have settings for you to customize it to your needs that you can learn more about via the “Learn more and get an invite “ link below are:

Conferencing
Call record
Call switch
Mobile site
Goog-411
Manage groups

Pray this brief intro to Google voice has whet your appetite and you will take the ball and obtain more info which will allow you to decide if you want to be part of this ground breaking telephony service and customize it to your individual needs.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links:
Learn more and get an invite
http://www.google.com/googlevoice/about.html

Clip from The Today Show on Google Voice
http://lifehacker.com/5302430/google-voice-may-open-to-all-today

Live It Forward - In Real Life

2009-06-16T18:59:00.002-04:00

The below article has nothing what so ever to do with home computing, but I felt compelled to share it here on Web Bytes Blog. Let me know your thoughts on this article or better yet checkout Kent’s Web site for more articles of this type if you are encouraged by this one.

Live It Forward - In Real Life
By Kent Julian (www.liveitforward.com)
If you read only one post from me, this is the one to read!

I wanted to update all of you on the life and times of the Julian family :-) But I really want you to understanding something as I share. Even though this has been a difficult week for us, Kathy and I feel like we are as blessed as ANYONE on the face of this planet. Let me explain.

Monday morning, my mother passed away suddenly. In other words, we were not expecting this. She had some health concerns, but nothing life threatening. So it was a surprise.

My mom lived her life well. Not perfectly, but well. She was a follower of Jesus Christ and stayed committed to Him during her entire life. During the past 2 days, this reality was very apparent to her family as over 1,000 people came either to the viewing or funeral to honor her life and her commitment to Christ. So while I'm sad that my mom is gone, I'm blown away by how many lives she impacted. If you get a chance, pray for my dad...the days ahead will be esp. sad and lonely for him.

Also, on Wednesday morning, Kathy and I rushed Kelsey (one of our twin daughters) to the hospital. I won't go into all the details, but 3 or 4 weeks ago we notice a few, slight changes in Kelsey--in her eating, drinking, energy-level, and more. The changes were very slight at first, but starting this past weekend everything accelerated, with each day getting worse. With all the chaos with my mom's death and our kitchen/hardwood floors being remodel (our house is currently a construction zone :-), we were not sure what was happening with her. We tried everything we knew to figure out what was going on and finally, in desperation, took her to the Emergency Room at Gwinnett Medical Center on Wednesday morning. Within a matter of minutes they diagnosed her with diabetes, and when all the test came back, we discovered she has Childhood Type 1 Diabetes. She is currently at Scottish Rite Hospital and all her training starts Friday.

So, our lives have changed a lot this week. Mom will no longer be with us here on earth. And we will now be a family learning what a "new normal" is all about. There is, of course, mourning and sadness. We have all shed tears during the past several days because Gramme is no longer with us and b/c Kelsey now has a life-long condition that, while she can live a normal life, requires constant monitoring, multiple shots and finger pricks on a daily basis, and more.

Yet again, Kathy and I feel as blessed as we've ever felt. Ever!!! One of our philosophies in life is that seldom are we in control of what happens to us, but we are always in control of our responses. In fact, the attitudes we embrace and the responses we choose are basically the only things in life of which we have 100% control. This is what I speak about and write about through my company--Live It Forward (www.liveitforward.com). Obviously, if I'm going to inspire others to live this way, I better be living this way myself.

So today, the Julian family chooses:

1. To embrace Kelsey's condition as normal.

2. To believe that Jesus is smiling on Kelsey, saying: "I have something extra special for you that you can only experience through having Diabetes. Trust me Kelsey, I have your absolute best in mind. I'm gracious and kind, and this condition is something that will ADD to your life, not take away from it. Remember, you are my special child."

3. Be excited about encouraging and leading Kelsey through the range of emotions she will experience because of this challenge. We know she will feel sad, scared, disappointed, and confused (we, as her parents, are feeling these emotions as well). However, we also know that as time goes on, Kelsey can choose to see her new life as normal and, even more, as something special and unique. What a great opportunity for Kathy and I to encourage and lead Kelsey, as well as Christopher and McKenize, through new challenges and options we could never have experienced without having a family member with Diabetes. As a family, we are beginning to realize that these new challenges also lead to new adventures that we would never have the privilege of experiencing if not for our "new normal." Sure, there are costs, but there are also unique privileges and rewards that we could never experience others.

4. To know that Kelsey will be an overachiever, which she has always been. One of my nicknames for her is "Competitive Princess." If you know Kelsey, you know she is sweet, quiet, gentle, and kind (i.e. "Princess"). Yet, you might not know that while quiet and gentle, she is extremely driven (i.e. "competitive"). Hence, my nickname "Competitive Princess." I think that nickname fits her even more now.

5. To understand that we are so BLESSED to live in the USA. Kathy grew up overseas in a third world country and KNOWS how hard it would be to support our daughter in a different county. I've led over a dozen short-term youth ministry mission trips and have seen this reality myself firsthand. The opportunity to embrace a "new normal" has a lot to do with the privilege of living here.

6. To understand the AMAZING communities which surround us. Stonemill Church, the Stingrays Swim Team, Jackson Elementary School (where Kathy works), and the national entrepreneurial networks like 48Days.Net and FreeAgentAcademy.com (networks I am connected with through my business) have been amazing during this week. We are thankful for each of you who have given of yourself to us.

7. To "live it forward" in the most important roles of our lives. To live WAY BEYOND our average.

I could say so much more, but are you beginning to see why we feel so blessed? While we would not choose Type 1 Diabetes for Kelsey (and we know she would not choose this path either), we do choose to accept it and believe Kelsey will do the same. But even more, we choose not to just accept it, but to embrace it! To experience life in a new and even better way. To choose, by faith, to know that Jesus has Kelsey's very best in mind. We choose to "live it forward" and live WAY BEYOND our average.

For the Julian family, these are not empty words...they are words by which we live.

© 2009 Kent Julian, Live It Forward LLC — All Rights Reserved

Life and career coach Kent Julian, "America's Career Coach for a New Generation," publishes the "Live It Forward™ REAL Success EZine," a bi-monthly ezine filled with free tips and strategies for pursuing the life and work you love. If you are ready to jump-start your career and find more joy and fulfillment in life, join the growing and dynamic Live It Forward community now at http://www.liveitforward.com

Today in Computer History

2009-06-16T18:41:00.005-04:00

On this day

…… in 1951, U.S Census Bureau dedicated UNIVAC 1 (Universal Automatic Computer), the world’s first commercial computer. This first generation computer was quite large and probably can be compared to what is known as super computer was the building block for the computers we use today. As I surf the Net, I am getting conflicting dates as to when this event actually transpired. Some articles state June 14 and some the 16th. Since the majority of the articles show June 14th, I dug a little deeper and eventually ended up at the U.S. Census Bureau Website (http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/001784.html) and the date is listed as June 14, 1951. I decided to go ahead and publish this information today any way as I felt this is an important part of computer history and should be known…next year is not promised.

…… in 1995, Apple announced its “Partnership in Education” grant recipients for 1995 allowing for the incorporation of Apple technology in the ten K-12 schools and teacher training institutions. The grant encompassed computer equipment, software and training worth $1.5 million

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

High Beam Research
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17065214.html

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-12T22:41:00.006-04:00

On this day
… 1997 – 3Com Corporation and U. S Robotics Corporation finalized their merger. 3Com paid U.S Robotics $6.6 billion which merged these two computer-industry giants in the area of networking.

….2003 – AOL released an alpha version ICQ Lite that would connect AIM and ICQ users allowing for exchange of instant messages (IM) between the two networks. AOL purchased ICQ in 1998.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

AOL Connects AIM, ICQ, Networks
http://www.betanews.com/article/AOL-Connects-AIM-ICQ-Networks/1055462892

AVG Anti-Virus

2009-06-11T23:30:00.004-04:00

In April one of the blog post was on freebies for Windows which included anti-virus programs (http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/04/more-freebies-for-windows.html). In reading various comparison studies, professional product reviews and users’ evaluation reports, one of the applications featured in this blog post stands out and has been deemed the best free anti-virus program. This free product is AVG anti-virus free edition and is said to be more effective than other free anti-virus software. Reviews of the paid version of AVG said it is right behind Norton Anti-virus 2009 which is a great position to be in. The paid version would have the same base as the free with additional features.

For more information check out these two links showing what to look for when deciding on an anti-virus program from About.com and a review of some of the products from Consumersearch.com

What to Look for in Anti-virus Software
http://netsecurity.about.com/od/antivirusandmalware/a/lookforav.htm

Anti-virus Software Reviews
http://www.consumersearch.com/antivirus-software

As always, submit your questions and comments and let’s have fun learning together.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-11T23:12:00.007-04:00

On this day
...1978 – On a single Silicon chip, Texas Instrument (known for calculators in 1978) introduced the first electronic duplication of human voice tract through an educational aid for ages 7 and above. This aid/toy was called Speak and Spell and would say a word for the user to spell via its alphabetical keypad. In turn, as the user depressed the key, Speak and Spell would pronounce the depressed letter for the user to hear the spelling of the word. At that time, Speak and Spell was quite an amazing educational toy.

...2006 – Google introduces a new online spreadsheet application, Google Docs spreadsheet, advancing into an area Microsoft has dominated with its Excel application. Google’s spreadsheet falls into the area of cloud computing or Web based applications and in the open source category.

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org

Google Combines Word Processing and Spreadsheets
http://news.cnet.com/Google-combines-word-processing,-spreadsheets/2100-1032_3-6124593.html

OpenOffice.org Update 2

2009-06-10T19:44:00.005-04:00

Today I received the periodic newsletter from OpenOffice.org (OO) and once again I am blogging on this free office productivity suite which has given us a free alternative to the Microsoft Office suite. The folks at OO are working diligently to improve the software and are listening to what we, the users, have to say.

First up is a few links that will help you stay in touch with what is happening with this software. The bloggers provide current and relevant issues and experiences via their use of the software:

• Planets - consolidate posts by several bloggers allowing you to find the information in one place (http://planet.services.openoffice.org/). There are also specialized Planets
• Bloggers - (created by members of OpenOffice.org projects) and Individual Blogs (http://www.openoffice.org/editorial/blogs.html)

Some new features in OpenOffice.org 3.1 are:

• Improved anti-aliasing for graphics. In other words, reducing the stair-stepping effect or jagged edge appearance of text and images…the edge pixels are blended to provide a smoother view of the image. This feature applies to the entire suite but should be more noticeable in Impress which is the suite’s presentation application equivalent to MS PowerPoint
• Improvements to comments – Writer offers new collaboration functionality supporting comments between document editors
• Text highlighting in Writer with a subtle background color and the SQL syntax in Base, helpful for finding errors
• Spell check is extended to grammar checking
• User Feedback Program

For all the new features and a detailed description check out this link http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.1/index.html#r2.1 and to check out the OpenOffice.org Community Forum visit the site at http://user.services.openoffice.org/en/forum/

Lastly, want to know how you can contribute to OpenOffice.org for developing this free productivity software monetarily or with your God given talents? Check this link to get complete information on how you can support this project http://contributing.openoffice.org/

As always, submit your questions and comments and let’s have fun learning together.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-10T19:20:00.006-04:00

On this day
… 1977 – Apple Computer Inc (now Apple Inc.) released Apple II Plus today. Due to increased memory, this computer could run video games, a database, word processor or a spreadsheet. Its predecessor, the Apple II, was also one of the first computers to have color display and was also available as a board only without the case and keyboard as known today. This may not mean much to us, but was a big stride in 1977.

….2002 – Apple Inc. launched an advertising campaign showing on people who switched from Microsoft Windows platform to Mac. An outgrowth of the campaign was these so called “real people” becoming celebrities

Sources:
Computer History Museum
http://www.computerhistory.org/tdih/

The Obsolete Technology Website
http://oldcomputers.net/appleii.html

Apple Switch Ad Campaign
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Switch_ad_campaign

Today in Computer History

2009-06-09T15:18:00.005-04:00

On this day
… 1986 – Supercomputer Center supports precursor to Internet. This is a huge step in making the Internet available to all as we know it now. Originally, the network was government owned and ARPANet (Advance Research Project Agency) a U.S military research network was the original Internet backbone. With the start of this, the government reassigned pieces of the ARPANet to NSFNet (National Science Foundation). In 1991 NSFNet allowed commercial use of the Internet for the first time and on April 30, 1995 the NSFNet backbone was decommissioned allowing the Internet to become a self-supporting industry consisting entirely of commercial ISP (Internet Service Providers) and private networks. Mistakenly, people call the Web (World Wide Web) the Internet, but this is just a service that operates over the Internet. This blog entry today is a brief glimpse into the history of the Internet and how the Internet we use today began.

If your are interested in learning more on this interesting topic see History of the Internet at http://www.glasglow.com/e2/hi/History_of_the_Internet.html or A Brief History of NSF and the Internet at ttp://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/cyber/internet.jsp

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2009-06-08T19:11:00.003-04:00

Sir Tim Berners-Lee was born on June 8, 1955, making him 54 years old today. Berners-Lee is known as the inventor of the World Wide Web (WWW) and this invention change the way we use computers today.

The source for this congratulatory note was ascertained from Time 100
at http://www.time.com/time/time100/scientist/profile/bernerslee.html

Backup Applications

2009-06-08T13:46:00.004-04:00

Backing up of our computer documents is a very important aspect of computer maintenance as well as security. This task can be done on external disks such as the USB, hard drives etc. There is also online applications that should be considered, some free and some for a fee. Most companies have backup applications for both home and business, but of course we will focus on home/personal use as this blog is geared toward home computing.

First up is Mozy.This company offers MozbyHome which is 2GB of online backup for home users with no setup fees, no expiration of the account and no credit card required to get this service. A copy of your data is stored at a remote location as is standard practice in any disaster preparedness plan for an organization. All that you have to do is sign up for the an account, download and install their software, select the files or the types of files you want to backup and the application does the rest. Mozy also offers MozyHome Unlimited for $4.95 a month unlimited backup for those requiring more than the 2GBs in MozyHome. http://mozy.com/

Next is Carbonite. This is a completely automated service for unlimited online backup at $54.95 a year. There is no free service, but you can try Carbonite for free for 15 days. The files are encrypted prior to being uploaded and stored at a secured backup location as with Mozy. I guess this is standard operating procedure for this type of service, as it should be. The application check constantly for new information and automatically backs up whatever new info is found. As this is an online application, you can access your files from any computer with Internet access. This service is also available for Macs. http://www.carbonite.com

Third is Adrive. This service has three plans (basic, signature and premium) with the basic for home/personal use. The basic plan is free and allows 50 GB of online storage and backup with the ability to edit your files online. Additionally, the basic plan allows for universal access as it is online and can be access from any computer with Internet access, file sharing, upload and download of files, search tools and remote file transfer. If you need more features than the basic allows, you can check out the other two plans at the link below (Signature is $6.95 a month or $69.95 for the year and Premium increases storage capacity to 100GB as well as other features for $13.95 per year). http://www.adrive.com/

This is just a few to get you started in investigating this aspect of computer security and maintenance. Don't forget to include Mediafire in your research as we used this storage application with our first Web Bytes Blog eBook back in January. You can check out the article that came out of researching this application at http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/01/mediafire.html

As always, submit your questions and comments and let’s have fun learning together.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-08T13:33:00.004-04:00

On this day
...1954 – Computer pioneer Alan Turing found dead of an apparent suicide. He made major contributions in the fields of Mathematics, cryptoanalysis, logic, philosophy, biology, computer science, cognitive science, artificial intelligence and artificial life1

...1979 – CompuServe was the first to offer email and the technical support for this application to personal computer users. The following year, the company continued in this vein to be the first to offer real-time chat²

1. Alan M. Turing
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/609739/Alan-M-Turing

2. CompuServe: The Value Leader in Cyberspace
http://webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com/menu/about.jsphttp://webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com/menu/about.jsp

Social Networking - Ning Platform

2009-06-06T03:33:00.002-04:00

Due to the rise in social networking¹, as reported by Nielson Online, a Market researcher, I decided to write this blog post on a specific social network platform. This platform is Ning² (Co-founded by Marc Andeeson of Netscape and Opsware), which gives one a choice of not following the pack (Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn etc.) but creating your own. Ning allows you to create your own social network around your specific interest(s), catering to whom ever you choose, while making it public or private. It’s your choice.

The platform is very user friendly and made of templates that you can customize to suit your particular taste. There is the free version which comes with a sub-domain name which includes Ning in the domain name for example,www.mysite.ning.com or a paid version which would be a regular domain, for example www.mysite.com. The architecture allows you to drop and drag the layout of the site with such features as videos, photos, discussion forums, blog entries, events, RSS (Real Simple Syndication) feeds and of course a “My Page” where individual members can customize to reflect their particular taste. The free site includes advertisements placed on the right side of the page. Creating your own network can allow for family interaction through a family site which can be private, by invitation only; for a particular event such as family reunion; a church fellowship community; craft groups, book clubs, study groups, technology groups as in home computing, projects, etc. The possibilities are limitless. You, as the creator, control the features to add to the site from those available and the levels of authority to give to participants.

The above is just and introduction to the world of social networking and if you would like more Web Bytes installments on this particular topic, let me know. I find the topic quite a fascinating as I have created two such networks and am a member of three other work related communities, allowing for the exchange of information of similar interest and creating new friendships.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

1. Social Networking Up 83% for U.S.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10255626-93.html

2.Ning
http://www.ning.com/

Today in Computer History

2009-06-06T01:19:00.005-04:00

On this day

…… in 1995, The Los Angeles Times announced The Vatican Library will be on the Web.

…… in 2005, Steve Jobs announced Apple will switch their Macintosh computers to Intel microprocessors in 2006.

Current Event: If you are in the Erie County area (Buffalo, NY) they are having an Recycling Collection Day event today where you can recycle your computer and electronics (personal not business) from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. To view the flyer for this event visit http://www.erie.gov/environment/pdfs/recycle_event.pdf

Let me know your thoughts on this segment as well as any other technology trivia occurring in the near future you would like to see as part of this blog segment.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Bing

2009-06-04T20:56:00.004-04:00

Bing is a new search vehicle from Microsoft that is supposed to help you search, explore and decide. According to Microsoft, Bing is a search engine that finds and organizes the answers you need so you can make faster, more informed decisions. Below are the features Bing brings to the search engine arena.

• Images – This selection shows various pictures of the topic you type into the search field. Hover your mouse over an image and you will see the title, size, Web address for the image, links to similar images and to send feedback to Bing. The photo also stands out as in a two dimensional view. Once you click on the image you are taken to a page where additional information is available on the image and the topic is expanded on to encompass all relevant information.

• Videos – This selection is broken down into groups – TV shows, Music, Most Watched, News and Sports. You can also just type right into the search field and all the results for the topic appear on the screen. Once you select a video it opens in another window and starts to play right away. On the video page you can customize the video by length, screen size, resolution and source.

• Shopping – On its front page you can take a tour to see how this section works, get cash back, read user reviews, and click on the Frequently Asked Questions. You can sort search results according to Best Match, Best User Rating, Best Expert Rating or Price. You can also select to show only the cash back items as your criteria for the search. There is quite a bit to see on these search pages so you definitely need to customize it so you would not miss what is important to meet your shopping needs.

• News – This section starts with Today’s Top News displaying some with video and some without. The main screen displays World, US, Local, Sports, Entertainment, Business, Politics, Sci/Tech and Health news in this order as well as the tabs on the left hand side of the page with the same areas.

• Maps – In this section you can get directions to a specified location, share this information via email or blog it through Windows Live ID, create a collection of this information for future reference, and you have the option of a general tour or a 3d tour video and you can print out the page information --- map and text, map only or text only. During my review, I found that the email links did not work for Gmail and AOL. After selecting the option I remained on the page without the email application opening up. When I click ‘Choose’ to select another email application, I was routed to make a select from an application on my computer. May be you will have better luck!

• Travel – This section has tabs across the top for Flights, Hotels, Cars, Cruises and Vacations. The Cars, Cruises and Vacations tabs route you to Orbitz.com for this information. The Flights and Hotels tabs are like other travel pages that give you the options to customize and narrow your selection to suit your need.
• Tour - You can tour Bing at http://www.discoverbing.com/tour/http://www.discoverbing.com/tour/

• Preferences – This selection allows you to customize your Bing experience. There is a series of features under the General Settings group that apply to all your searches and another series under the Web Settings group that apply only to your Web search results

Once again we are given another option to choose from when the need arise to search the Net. Give Bing (http://www.bing.com/) a try and see how you like it as well as let your fellow Web Bytes readers know your thoughts on your Bing experience.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-04T20:49:00.006-04:00

On this day

…… in 1991, The US and Japan made a pack agreement to trade Microprocessors.

…… in 2006, Microsoft announced they will remove support for saving files in the PDF format option from Office 2007 and Vista due to a threat from Adobe to take legal action. Apparently their differences were resolved since the save as PDF feature is included in Office 2007 and Vista…this would be for another day in Computer History.

Let me know your thoughts on this as well as any other technology trivia occurring in the near future you would like to see as part of this blog segment.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Today in Computer History

2009-06-03T14:37:00.007-04:00

On this day

…… in 1990, Robert Noyce co-founder of Intel and co-inventor of the Integrated Circuit which allowed the power of computers to increase dramatically died.

…… in 2005, Google started to experiment to aid web indexing with Sitemaps

This is a new segment to Web Bytes, just a little bit of computer history, and I hope to be able to bring some technology trivia to you on a regular basis. Let me know your thoughts on this as well as any other technology trivia occurring in the near future you would like to see as part of this blog segment.

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Secure Passwords

2009-06-02T23:42:00.009-04:00

Several weeks ago I added a link to my friend, Dillon Ross', blog on strong passwords called “My password is...” (http://yourtechnologycoach.blogspot.com/) and today I am going to reiterate this message as well as add some more tips to help you secure your passwords. Additionally there will be some links to help in this area, assist in password selection and manage your passwords.

DON'T:

Use easy to guess information such as your last name, birthday, family, pets, etc...things that are easy to guess.
Proper words, words that you can look up their meaning in the dictionary
Use the same password on multiple sites

DO:

Use combination of letters, numbers, special characters as well as upper and lower case letters
Use at least eight (8) characters
Add middle numbers and special characters
Change or update your password often
A memory trick or cipher like Dillon specified use a letter or special character to represent the first letter in each word in a memorable phrase such as "All good things must come to an end" the password would be: Agtmc2ae.

You can test the security of your password by using the password strength checker at www.passwordmeter.com. While there, also check on ways to strengthen your password.

If you find it hard to come up with a strong password, you can try one of the sites listed below:
Password Bird at www.passwordbird.com
Strong Password Generator at www.strongpasswordgenerator.com
Gibson Research Corporation at www.grc.com/passwords.htm
Password Checker at http://www.microsoft.com/protect/yourself/password/checker.mspx

You can engage a password manager at one of the links below:
Roboform at www.roboform.com
Passpack at www.passpack.com (online only)

Remember, using strong passwords will only be one item in your arsenal to secure your information and files.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Safety Tips on Free Internet Access

2009-06-01T20:14:00.003-04:00

Anyone with free Internet access through hotspots using a laptop with a wireless device or mobile phones to connect to the Internet needs to be cautioned. This is terrific but these are shared networks, meaning other people are also connected to the Internet using the same connection. In situations like this, you have to presume hackers may be stealing your personal information and listening to everything you do. Hackers can set up a second network as if it is the legitimate connection you think you are connecting to. Once your information is captured by the hacker you are then routed to the correct network – this is called man-in-the-middle attack (MITM) as there is a third computer involve in the communication. Man-in-the-middle attacks can be active or passive. Active attacks involves the contents being changed before it is sent to its intended recipient and passive attacks involve the contents being captured and then sent to the intended recipient without being detected. When you are using a secured connection your secured router will act as adequate physical security.

Below are some precautions to help protect your information when it is necessary to use a public Internet connection:
• Keep operating system, firewall, anti-virus and anti-spyware programs up to date
• Encrypt your communications. If you are interested in more information on this check out this article on Lifehacker…may be a bit technical but it is an option (http://lifehacker.com/180878/how-to-encrypt-your-emailhttp://lifehacker.com/180878/how-to-encrypt-your-email)
• Use only sites that use https and also when checking your mail check to see if there is https connection (see The Difference between http and https http://www.webbytesblog.com/2009/01/tib-bit.html)
• Any activity involving sensitive information, do on a network you control – at home or one you are paying for Internet access
• If possible, plug into a high speed connection using a cable
• Check who is physically in view of your laptop screen. Information compromise can and does occur physically, the old fashion way

Don’t think the above only pertains to outside connections, the same can also be said for Internet connections such as in hotel rooms, cafes and air planes etc. because these connections (via routers, cables and hubs etc.) are owned and controlled by the entity’s management. Also, the configuration of the network may be such that you and the other users in the area may be able to see each others activities. Remember you are not controlling the connection or paying an ISP (Internet Service Provider) for the connection so anything is possible.

Pray this helps you with accessing the Internet using a public access connection as you are out and about in this wonderfully warm weather.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

A Memorial Day Tribute

2009-05-25T12:53:00.005-04:00

A special thanks to those who served with me in the 34th, 722nd and 1st Tac!

Online Quizzes

2009-05-18T14:40:00.003-04:00

Another interesting article at PCMagazine.com that I thought I would pass along the information in case you didn't get a chance to read yesterday's issue. I found it quite interesting and alarming at the same time and thank God I am not interested in online quiz taking. With this said, the article is “The Hidden Secrets of Online Quizzes” by J. R. Raphael illuminating some very interesting facts on the behind the scenes motives for these seemingly entertaining aspects on the Web. If you are curious enough to know more of what Raphael considers “The Real Deal”, check out his article at http://www.pcworld.com/article/164527/the_hidden_secrets_of_online_quizzes.html?tk=nl_wbx_h_topstory

In depth blog entries are kind of slow right now as I am working on a very time-consuming project. Will try to post a more in depth article soon and as often as time permits. Thanks for your understanding and as always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

HCM - Home Computer Museum

2009-05-14T02:10:00.005-04:00

Hey guys, I just came across this really neat site called the HCM - Home Computer Museum (HCM) by Kerstin and Stefan Walgenbach. Its new to me but has been around from the 1990s and many of you may already know of this museum. If you are into history and especially history of computers, this would be an ideal site to spend some time like you would normally do in a brick and mortar museum checking out the over 500 different machines in the museum's collection. The collection is well organized with links leading to the Inventory, Manufacturer, New Items as well as a wonderful Exhibition. From what I can see, the items in the New Items section span from 1996 to 2006. Other sections are What's New? - which is the page I started on; History; Flea Market – which has a Trade-List and a Want-List; Know-How; a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section and a Special Thanks section thanking contributors to the museum. With this said, set some time aside and take a stroll down memory lane or get acquainted with some neat throw-back technology at http://www.homecomputer.de. I am really glad I came across this site and am looking forward to hearing from you on your experience as you leisurely browse the wonderful items on display.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

OpenOffice.org 3.1

2009-05-07T14:57:00.002-04:00

Hey all you OpenOffice.org enthusiast and new users, I just received an email from the folks over at OpenOffice.org announcing the general availability of OpenOffice.org 3.1 for download. Apparently, this encompasses a significant upgrade to this open source software...free software. I won't give a full write up here of OpenOffice.org since it was written about previously on Web Bytes (http://www.webbytesblog.com/2008/10/this-is-first-of-two-part-series-on.html) but as many of you may know, volunteers work on this software to make and keep it cutting-edge and available free to the general public. Speaking of the general public, quite a few of these updates were voted on by users of previous versions as their most desired features, showing that your voice counts with the people at OpenOffice.org so keep letting them know your wishes when asked . The biggest and most noticeable change is to on-screen graphics with changes to Writer, Calc, Chart, Impress, Base, and some behind the sceen features. For a full listing of the new features and to download 3.1 visit the respective links below.

The Guide to New Features
http://www.openoffice.org/dev_docs/features/3.1/index.html

Download OpenOffice.org 3.1
http://download.openoffice.org/

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Strong Passwords

2009-05-03T19:52:00.004-04:00

In my 10/6/08 (Home Computer Security) and 10/9/08 (Tid Bit on the National Cyber Security Awareness Month) blog posts, the issue of strong passwords was mentioned briefly regarding its usage lowering the possibility of a security breach. To take this topic a little further, my friend Dillon Ross over at Technology Coach has posted an article that gives more details on this topic and what you can do to help safeguard your passwords. When you get a chance, go visit the Technology Coach at www.yourtechnologycoach.blogspot.com and check out this post. While there, look around and if you like what you see there, show your support and follow his blog. Thanks!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

PrintWhatYouLike.com

2009-05-01T04:42:00.006-04:00

Aligned with yesterday's post, is another Eco-friendly printing alternative known as Printwhatyoulike.com. This free online editor lets you format any Web page for printing. There is no downloading require as with GreenPrint World since the editor runs through your browser. This allows for saving money and contributes to helping the environment by reducing paper and ink usage. Printwhatyoulike also eliminates copying and pasting by condensing the content to just what you want to print.

To get started with your printing, you would enter the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the Web page you want to print (for example www.whatever.com) and click go. This takes you to the page and the Printwhatyoulike tool bar opens on the left of the screen where you can customize the page for printing. The tool bar has different options allowing you to select a portion of the text on the page, increase or decrease the selection, remove images, remove background, change the font type and size, add pages to make one complete document, save your changes as a PDF (Portable Document Format) or HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), and there is an auto format button that lets the editor do the formatting for you. You can view the edited document in the print preview window prior to printing. Its really nice, at least I think so. Easy to follow directions as well as a video tour are on Printwhatyoulike home page: http://www.printwhatyoulike.com

In addition to going to the Printwhatyoulike Web site and entering the Web page you would like to print, there is also a feature called Bookmarklet (http://www.printwhatyoulike.com/bookmarklet) that you can place in your bookmarks tool bar. When you want to print the Web page you are on, you just click on the bookmarklet in your bookmarks tool bar. The printwhatyoulike tool bar will open on the left of the page and you can make changes to the page prior to printing. When you are finished close the bookmarklet and only your edited page will remain. You can print it out or save it to a PDF or HTML document as previously mentioned.

Hope this will be of help to everyone that prints from the Web. It certainly has been for me.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

GreenPrint World

2009-04-30T11:01:00.002-04:00

GreenPrint World is a free downloadable software for home users from GreenPrint Technologies. It is a tool for saving paper, thereby, saving you time, money and trees---yeah, go green!

When installed on your PC GreenPrint removes all the unnecessary text and images from a printed Web page. The URLs, banner ads etc, are removed so your printed work only contains the text if you so choose. This is a nifty tool for me since it saves me from having to copy and paste articles I would like to printout and read while on the go to a Word document. By default, GreenPrint is set to load at start up so that it is always ready, is set as the default printer, enabling the ability to print from any application and looks at how to save pages on everything you print.

GreenPrint Configuration is a way to customize your experience with this application. You can access this feature by right clicking the green icon in your system tray and select this option. Here you will find four tabs (General Tab which supplies basic information, GreenPrint Logic Tab which supplies the earth saving features, Printer Tab which shows how this application communicates with your printer and the Reports Tab which keeps track of your savings on pages, trees and money) to go through and select the options you want. The preview of your document shows all the pages to be printed and you can remove pages, remove text or remove images by right clicking the page and select the option. Double clicking a page will remove it from being printed and you can double click it to add it back to the set of pages ready for printing. Once GreenPrint is downloaded you will have three printers installed for this application – GreenPrint, GreenPrint PDF (Portable Document Format) and GreenPrint Mail PDF – allowing you print, create a PDF and email a PDF directly from within the application if you so desire. As with most free software, they have their paid siblings --- GreenPrint Home Premium for $29 and the Enterprise edition for $70.

Just thought I would pass this along to my Web Bytes family. This will be very cost effective if you do a lot of your printing from the Internet and if you need a PDF creator...its free.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links:
GreenPrint World by Steven Volynets
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2331973,00.asp

GreenPrint World Free Software
http://download.cnet.com/GreenPrint-World/3000-2088_4-10799305.html

Firefox Fixes

2009-04-26T02:23:00.002-04:00

Today's post continues on the same theme as yesterday's, focusing on browser fixes. I guess this is the time for spring cleaning and housekeeping tasks. Although completed prior to Chrome's fixes which warrant a new version, Firefox fixes consisted of a new update to its existing version 3 --- 3.0.9. This new update targets 12 security vulnerabilities in the Firefox browser. These vulnerabilities account for the recent frequent crashing of my Firefox browser while on the Internet. For more information on this topic and all of the intricate details of the vulnerabilities, see Mozilla Security Advisory 2009-14 “Crashes with evidence of memory corruption at http://www.mozilla.org/security/announce/2009/mfsa2009-14.html and Steven Musil's Cnet article “Firefox 3.0.9 Targets 12 Security Vulnerabilities” at
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10224719-83.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1009_3-0-20

Another interesting article is on Znet by Ed Burnette titled “Firefox 3.0.9 Fixes 67 Bugs, 23 Critical” which gives us links to three Mozilla Security Advisories and all the Firefox 3 updates since its inception back in June of 2008. If you are interested in this information, you can check it out at http://blogs.zdnet.com/Burnette/?p=1054.

I pray this and yesterday's information on browser security fixes for Google's Chrome and Mozilla's Firefox was helpful to you. In turn, you share this information with family and friends to help with their Internet browsing experience.

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Chrome's New Release

2009-04-25T20:26:00.005-04:00

Previously I wrote two blog entries on Google's sleek new browser, Chrome (Google's Chrome http://webbytesblog.blogspot.com/2008/12/googles-chrome.html and Google's Chrome Update http://webbytesblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/googles-chrome-update.html ). Therefore, it is only appropriate that I update you on the the release of a new version of Chrome to fix high-severity security problems --- version 1.0.154.59. Since Chrome automatically updates itself there is no action on your part except to restart your computer once the new version has been installed. For detailed information see Mark Larson, Google Chrome Program Manager, 4/23/09 announcement and release notes for this security fix at http://googlechromereleases.blogspot.com/2009/04/stable-update-security-fix.html and Google's Chrome issues at http://code.google.com/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=9860 .

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

More Freebies for Windows

2009-04-24T18:39:00.003-04:00

Your PC's anti-virus and anti-spyware needs can be taken care of with some pretty good freebies. After listing the applications, I will supply the links for downloading the respective software.

First up is Avira Antivir Personal for Windows which provides basic protection against viruses, worms, Trojans, backdoor programs and dialers. No commercial use of this free software is allowed. Some features of Avira are:

Constantly scanning for malicious programs as listed above
Monitor actions performed by the operating system as well as the user
Promptly reacts when a malicious program is detected
Supports Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Server 2008

AVG Free Edition for Windows is a free downloadable application that provides basic anti-virus and anti-spyware protection for use on home computers (no commercial use). Some features are:

LinkScanner- checks Web pages before opening
Compatible with Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP
Easy download, installation and use

Avast Home Edition for Windows scans on the PC's initial boot up as well as through standard scanning modes aiding in the removal of stubborn viruses. It provides desktop security and data protection, detecting and removing all forms of malware. As the name implies, no commercial use is allowed. Some features of Avast are:

Daily automatic updates
Resident shield and self-protection
Web and P2P (peer to peer) protection
Anti-spy and anti-root kit tool
Supports Windows 95/98/Me, 2000, XP, and Vista

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Links:
Avira Antivir Personal
http://www.free-av.com/en/products/1/avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html

AVG Free Edition for Windows
http://free.avg.com/download-avg-anti-virus-free-edition

Avast Home Edition for Windows – Click on the FREE SOFTWARE tab
http://www.avast.com/

Setting Up a Home Network with Windows XP

2009-04-20T16:19:00.005-04:00

Before we get into the details of setting up a home network with Windows XP, lets look at the benefits of a network. They include :

Share files among computers which frees up space on hard drives where the files are not stored
Share printers, CD-Rom drives and other removable drives
Share Internet connection among several computers
Share multi-player games

With that said, if you like these benefits lets continue.

The decision has to be made as to what type of network would meet your needs ... wired or wire less. If you have a laptop, a wireless network would be the best choice. This allows you to use your laptop throughout the house. If not, a wired network is best for desktops and other stationery devices. This type of network is more secured than its wireless counterpart, very reliable, fast and easy to set up. After this decision, we need to purchase the necessary hardware to accomplish the task at hand. The wired set up may consist purchasing an Ethernet cable (like a thick telephone cord), a wall-plugged network extender kit (which extends the wired network across your home's power lines) and even the services of an electrician if the computers are in different rooms (This is something you don't want to mess with unless you, yourself is an electrician). For the wireless set up you need what is called 802.11 technology. The following link examines the pros and cons of the varying 802.11 technologies as well as Bluetooth and some others http://compnetworking.about.com/cs/wireless80211/a/aa80211standard.htm

I would be trying to reinvent the wheel to go through the steps of setting up a wired and wireless network so below are some links from Microsoft showing how to set up these networks for Windows XP. Additionally, the 802.11 hardware comes with instructions and software that will enable you to set up the network. I set up my own wireless network about five years ago using Linksys 802.11g and recently my sister's using Linksys also and my niece's using Westell VersaLinkwith the information supplied by these manufacturers, encountering no problems. Really simple to understand and follow directions.

Wired
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/wired.mspx

Wireless
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/wireless.mspx

Wireless Using Windows Connect
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/connectnow.mspx

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace

Other Useful Links:
How To Set Up A Home Network on Windows XP
http://www.ehow.com/how_4886637_up-home-network-windows-xp.html

Setting Up A Home Network
http://www.geekgirls.com/windowsxp_home_network.htm

Setting Up Your Network
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/setup/default.mspx

Get Connected with Windows XP
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/default.mspx

The Conficker Worm, Revisited!

2009-04-15T23:09:00.002-04:00

Conficker has been quite busy. I have a friend whose PC became infected with the Conficker virus, exhibiting the symptoms noted in the first article below. This has been quite a frustrating time for him. Just as this article mentioned, he got pop-up windows every few seconds warning him that his PC has a virus and click here for protection. This tactic is to get the unsuspecting user to purchase a bogus sense of security. The article called this “scareware” I presume because of the persistency of the fake pop-ups to frighten the user; the so-called program is named “SpywareProtect2009”. Luckily, he didn't click on the installed link to get this protection but after hours of frustration, he called the PC manufacturer's technical support. They scanned his PC for viruses, finding none. Afterwards, he installed the free McAfee protection suite that comes with AOL paid membership as well as Spybots S&D. Both scans were clean. Hopefully, he will be diligent on his PC housekeeping in the future as his system had no anti-virus or anti-spamware protection. Apparently he didn't read some of the Web Bytes posts last year such as, PC maintenance which can be found at http://webbytesblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/automatic-maintenance.html, Home Computing Security http://webbytesblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/home-computing-security.html and Spybots Search and Destroy http://webbytesblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/spybot-search-destroy.html. Below are two articles I received from Firewallguide.com dealing with current material on Conficker, one from the Washington Post and the other from PC Magazine.

Conficker Worm Awakens, Downloads Rogue Anti-virus Software
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2009/04/conficker_worm_awakens_downloa.html?wprss=securityfix

Your Conficker To-Do List
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2344170,00.asp

As always, email me with your topics and let’s have a good time learning together!

In His Service,
AvaByGrace